Huskers Gear Up for NCAA Tournament

First Round
No. 44 Nebraska (20-7, 7-4 Big 12) vs. No. 22 Tulsa (25-2, 3-0 C-USA)
Date: Saturday, May 14, 2011
Location: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Venue: Varsity Tennis Center
Start time: 9 a.m. CDT

Second Round
Date: Sunday, May 15, 2011
Start time: Noon CDT

The Nebraska women’s tennis team will travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. this Saturday to compete in their second-straight NCAA Tournament. The No. 44 Huskers (20-7, 7-4 Big 12) are slated to face the No. 22 Tulsa Golden Hurricane (25-2, 3-0 C-USA) at 10 a.m. at the Varsity Tennis Center. NU and Tulsa met up once previously this season on March 23. The Golden Hurricane prevailed in that dual, taking a 1-6 victory over an injury-hampered Nebraska.

The winner of the Nebraska-Tulsa matchup will move on to the second round, where they will face the winner of Akron (20-4) and No. 10 Michigan (22-4). The winner of the second round match will move on to Stanford to compete in the final 16-team bracket

Two Huskers Named to All-Big 12 Team
Junior Madeleine Geibert and sophomore Patricia Veresova were named to the All-Big 12 Singles team on Wednesday. This is Geibert’s third-straight appearance on the singles team, while Veresova picked up her first career honor. This marks the sixth-straight year NU has had players named to the all-conference team, and the fifth consecutive season in which Nebraska has had multiple selections.

Kansas State freshman Petra Niedermayerova garnered both Big 12 Player and Freshman of the Year accolades. Niedermayerova’s selection is only the second time in league history the same student-athlete has earned both distinctions. Sona Novakova of Baylor was named the league Newcomer of the Year, and Texas Tech Head Coach Todd Petty was awarded Coach of the Year honors. 

 

Nebraska Lands at No. 44 After Regular Season
The Huskers finished the regular season ranked No. 44 in the ITA Division I Women’s Tennis Rankings released May 2. NU began 2011 ranked at No. 34 and peaked on Feb. 22 at No. 26. Losses dropped the Big Red’s rank and they were never able to break the No. 38 mark during the remainder of the season. The Huskers spent 15 consecutive weeks in the rankings this year.

Tracking the Rankings
Date                 Rank
Jan. 4               #34
Jan. 25             #34
Feb. 3               #33
Feb. 8               #32
Feb. 14             #31
Feb. 22             #26
March 1            #36
March 8            #32
March 15           #29
March 22           #41
March 29           #41
April 5               #38
April 12             #34
April 19             #38
April 26             #41
May 2               #44

Geibert and Weinstein Continue Appearance in Rankings
Madeleine Geibert and Stefanie Weinstein earned their fourth-straight appearance in the ITA Division I Women’s Doubles Rankings at the No. 80 position. The duo went 1-1 during the Big 12 Championships in No. 1 doubles, defeating Colorado’s top pairing but losing to Texas A&M. Geibert and Weinstein have compiled a record of 16-7 this season at the No. 1 position.

Geibert/Weinstein's Ranking
Date                 Rank
March 1            #76
March 15           #71
April 12             #85
April 19             #69
April 26             #81
May 2               #80

Scouting the Tulsa Golden Hurricane
The No. 22 Tulsa Golden Hurricane earned an automatic berth for the NCAA Tournament after capturing their fourth Conference-USA title in five years. Tulsa is currently riding a 20-match winning streak and is fresh off a 4-3 victory over No. 33 SMU in the C-USA title dual.

The Golden Hurricane feature No. 96-ranked Alexandra Kichoutkin in No. 1 singles. Kichoutkin holds a record of 25-13 on the season and closed out the season with victories in nine of her 11 matches. Tulsa is led by Anastasia Erofeeva and Ewa Szatkowska in doubles. The duo plays at the No. 2 position, where they have put together a record of 21-2 this season.

Tulsa is led by Head Coach Dean Orford, who is in his sixth season. Orford has become the all-time winningest coach at TU, with an overall record of 117-37.