Huskers Host Two Big 12 Teams This Weekend

Lincoln -- The Nebraska women’s tennis team begins a four-match home stretch against Big 12 Conference competition this weekend when it plays host to Kansas State (5-10) April 10 and Texas Tech (10-6) April 11. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. at either Woods Tennis Center (indoors) or the Cather Pound Courts (outdoors), depending upon the weather conditions.

The Huskers appear to be gaining momentum as the final month of the season gets under way. NU has won three of its last five matches, all by scores of 7-0. The Huskers picked up their first Big 12 win March 26 against Iowa State, then blasted Saint Louis March 28, winning every singles match in straight sets. The Huskers nearly pulled off an upset of No. 55 Missouri April 3, dropping a 4-3 heartbreaker in Columbia. At 11-6 overall and 1-4 in the league, Nebraska needs just one more victory to match its 2003 win total of 12. Nebraska is 2-5 this season against ranked opponents, defeating No. 64 Yale Feb. 21 and No. 75 Utah March 17.

The Huskers continue to be led by senior Leslie Harvey and sophomore Milena Schulz-Gartner. Both have 12-5 spring records and were the only players who posted singles victories in the loss at Missouri. Harvey picked up her 50th career win in Nebraska’s victory over the Utah March 17. She is 5-1 at No. 2 singles and 7-4 in the No. 3 spot. Schulz-Gartner is 9-2 at No. 2 singles and 3-3 when playing in the top spot. Harvey and Schulz-Gartner both carry three-match winning streaks into the weekend.

No. 1 singles player Gitte Ostermann was ranked No. 62 in the April 6 ITA rankings. She is 6-5 competing in the No. 1 singles spot in 2004.

A Look at Kansas State and Texas Tech
Kansas State enters the week with a 5-10 overall record and a 1-6 mark in the Big 12. The Wildcats defeated Iowa State, 6-1, over the weekend to pick up their first Big 12 win. KSU, which dropped out of the ITA rankings in mid-March, is led by junior Maria Rosenberg, who has a 9-6 record at No. 1 singles. Senior Paulina Castillejos, who is the sister of NU sophomore Pamela Castillejos, is 7-8 at No. 3 singles. The Wildcats are coached by Steve Bietau, the 2000 Big 12 Coach of the Year. Bietau is in his 18th season.

Nebraska owns a 25-8 series advantage over KSU. The teams did not play last year.

Texas Tech, 10-6 overall and 3-4 in the Big 12, also recently fell out of the ITA rankings. The Red Raiders’ conference wins came against Kansas, Kasnas State and Oklahoma State. Tech, which plays at Iowa State April 10, is led by No. 1 singles player Irina Tereschenko. Tereschenko is 10-6 this spring in the top spot. Tech is coached by Cari Groce, who is in her first year after spending 12 seasons at Washington State.

Nebraska is 8-5 all-time against the Red Raiders and defeated them, 5-2, on March 30, 2003, in the last meeting between the teams.

Up Next
Following its weekend matches against Kansas State and Texas Tech, the Huskers will play host to Kasnas April 17 and No. 68 Colorado April 18 at either Woods Tennis Center (inside) or the Cather Pound Courts (outside), depending upon the weather.

Last Time Out: NU Falls to Missouri, 4-3
Nebraska dropped a 4-3 heartbreaker to No. 55 Missouri April 3 at the Green Tennis Center in Columbia, Mo. NU fell to 11-6 overall and 1-4 in the Big 12, while the Tigers improved to 11-8 and 4-5 in the league.

Tied at 3-3, the match came down to the No. 6 singles contest. MU’s Lucie Ruskova came back from being down one set to knock off Nebraska junior Katie Garcia, winning the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Nebraska grabbed the momentum early, taking the doubles point after Garcia and Gitte Ostermann won at No. 2 doubles and Milena Schulz-Gartner and Anna Oehme picked up a win at the No. 3 spot. Schulz-Gartner and senior Leslie Harvey provided the Huskers’ singles wins. Schulz-Gartner knocked off Katka Seycikova, 6-2, 3-6, 3-6 at No. 2 singles, and Harvey defeated Hana Kraftova, 0-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) in a battle at No. 3 singles.

At No. 1 singles, the Tigers’ Urska Juric defeated Ostermann, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2.

Ostermann Ranked No. 48 in ITA Poll
Nebraska junior Gitte Ostermann earned the No. 48 spot in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division I Women’s preseason rankings released March 23. Ostermann is 6-5 at the No. 1 spot this season, as she missed the first five meets of the season with injury.

Ostermann was ranked 19th in the ITA preseason rankings released on Jan. 12, the highest ranking ever for a Husker women’s tennis player. Ostermann, who was previously unranked, raced up the charts after producing a 14-4 fall record, including an 8-3 mark against opponents listed in the preseason rankings. Only two players in the country had more top-100 wins than Ostermann during the fall.

Ostermann, the Huskers’ No. 1 singles player for the past two seasons, owns a 33-21 career record and was a first-team All-Big 12 pick in 2003 despite playing with a injured shoulder. Her previous high ranking came two years ago when she was ranked No. 55 as a freshman.

Nebraska Coach Scott Jacobson
In his 13th year, Scott Jacobson continues to lead Nebraska to success on the national level despite battling one of the toughest conferences in the nation.

With a career-record of 158-124, Jacobson is the winningest coach in Nebraska women’s tennis history. He has led the Huskers to a national ranking in each of the past seven seasons. NU has also produced seven straight winning seasons under Jacobson’s leadership. Jacobson’s top seasons were in 2000 and 2001, when he guided the program to consecutive 19-6 records.

Jacobson has coached six Big 12 Conference champions and three all-conference players, including Gitte Ostermann in 2003. A school-record five Nebraska women’s tennis players were named to the Academic All-Big 12 team last season. In Jacobson’s 12 years, the Huskers have combined for 24 academic all-conference honors, including 15 first-team accolades.

In 2003, Jacobson led NU to a 12-11 record and a No. 76 ranking. Nebraska defeated two ranked teams, including No. 71 Eastern Michigan and No. 66 Denver.