Huskers Open Fall Season at Drake Invitational

The Nebraska women's tennis team will open fall tournament play at the Drake Invitational in Des Moines, Iowa on Sept. 9-11. The weekend will begin with doubles action on Friday, followed by singles play on Saturday and Sunday. Other teams in attendance include Wichita State, Creighton, South Dakota State, Northern Iowa, Wisconson-Milwaukee and Nebraska-Omaha. Live updates will be available on the Drake University athletic website.

Mary Weatherholt, Janine Weinreich, Frederike Putthoff and Maike Zeppernick will represent the Huskers on the weekend. All four competitors will appear in singles, while only Putthoff and Zeppernick will take the court in doubles for Nebraska.

"The girls are excited to kick off the season and get started," Assistant Coach Hayden Perez said. "They have been working hard in the weight room and this weekend will be an opportunity to see it pay off."

Weatherholt will return to competition for the first time after a season-ending injury in January, while Weinreich, Putthoff and Zeppernick will take the court after finishing the 2011 season in May.

"Mary Weatherholt is returning to action for the first time since last January and is approaching it with a great attitude," Perez said. "Janine Weinreich, Maike Zeppernick and Frederike Putthoff are also eager to begin."

The Huskers enter the 2011-12 season after their second consecutive 20-win season last spring, finishing with an overall record of 20-8. NU also posted their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The team picked up two All-Big 12 selections as well as five first-team Academic All-Big 12 honors and one second-team accolade.

Huskers Gather Academic Awards
The Nebraska women's tennis team collected another round of academic awards recently, as the team was named an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team.  

In addition, six Huskers were named 2011 ITA Scholar-Athletes. Patricia Veresova, Mary Weatherholt, Stefanie Weinstein, Maike Zeppernick, Abby Buxton and Chelsea Finnegan all received ITA accolades for their academic achievements.

In order to qualify for the team award, a collegiate tennis team must post a 3.20 grade-point average or higher. ITA Scholar-Athletes must be varsity letter winners, have a grade-point average of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and have been enrolled at their school for at least two semesters.

2011 ITA Scholar-Athletes
Abby Buxton
Chelsea Finnegan
Mary Weatherholt
Patricia Veresova
Stefanie Weinstein
Maike Zeppernick

Nebraska Unveils 2012 Schedule
The Huskers released their complete spring schedule this week, featuring an appearance in the ITA Kickoff Classic in late January as well as the beginning of Big Ten action in March. Nebraska's schedule features 14 consecutive home matches on the slate from early February to mid-March.

NU will face Arkansas in their opening ITA Kickoff Classic match in Evanston, Ill. on Jan. 28, followed up with a match against either Dartmouth or Big Ten foe Northwestern. The Huskers will also gear up for a challenging nonconference slate in 2012, highlighted by matchups with Washington State, Wichita State and Tulsa. Nebraska will also have last year's Big 12 conference slate when they face Kansas State and Colorado.

The Huskers will open Big Ten play on March 9 against conference challenger Iowa before facing the remainder of their Big Ten schedule between March 24 and April 22. NU will split their conference slate evenly, playing five matches at home in Lincoln and hitting the road for the remaining portion of their schedule. They will wrap up their first year of Big Ten action with the Big Ten Championships in Columbus, Ohio on April 26-29.