Ashley Finnegan Season 2008-09

2008-09: Senior

Ashley Finnegan, one of three seniors on the 2008-09 team, was counted on to be one of Nebraska's leaders and top players on the court. She didn't disappoint, delivering an unbeaten doubles season in the spring with four victories. All four of her wins came at the No. 3 position, teaming up with three different partners throughout the season.

 

Finnegan was able to find success on the singles court, as well. She played outstanding tennis in the fall, winning all four matches she played, but cooled off in the spring, finishing with a record 7-6.

 

A tremendous student in the classroom, Finnegan garnered first-team academic All-Big 12 accolades for the first time in her career.

 

2007-08: Junior

Finnegan fought for a spot at the bottom of the Huskers’ singles rotation throughout the year, as three different players recorded at least six matches at the No. 6 singles position in 2007-08. After playing every match at the No. 6 spot as a sophomore in 2006-07 for Nebraska and posting a 13-9 record, Finnegan was once again successful at that spot in 2007-08, going 4-3 in seven matches.

 

Finnegan turned it on during the last two matches of the season. She won in three sets in Nebraska’s final regular-season match against Kansas State, and then four days later defeated another Wildcat at the No. 6 spot at the Big 12 Championships, this one in straight sets. Two of Finnegan’s three losses during the spring came in three sets to two of the Big 12’s top teams, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State.

 

After winning two singles and two doubles matches in the fall, Finnegan wound up with nine combined wins for the season, giving her 31 combined wins in her two seasons at Nebraska after winning 21 in her freshman season at the College of Charleston.

 

Finnegan also continued her academic success as a junior, as she was named to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll in the fall, making it the third time at NU that she has been named to the list.

 

2006-07: Sophomore

Finnegan was one of two transfers on the 2006-07 Husker squad and played in all 22 of NU’s matches at the No. 6 singles position. She compiled a 13-9 record, including wins in four of her last six matches. Her 13-9 singles record was good for the third-best winning percentage (.591) on the team.

 

Finnegan’s closest match came against Iowa State’s Chrissy Derouin. The match went three sets, with Finnegan coming up with a narrow 7-6 (9-7), 5-7, (10-8) victory. Finnegan only went to three sets three times all season, winning two. Eleven of Finnegan’s 13 singles victories on the year were in straight sets.

 

She also teamed up with fellow sophomore Marianne Cicmanec in doubles play, where they struggled to find consistency most of the year, and wound up with a 6-15 record. They did find a groove in the middle of the season, winning three of four matches at one point.

 

2005-06: College of Charleston

Finnegan racked up 21 combined wins as a freshman at the College of Charleston for Coach Angelo Anastopoulo. With her solid play, Finnegan helped the Cougars to a 13-10 team record as they advanced to the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference Championships.

 

Before Nebraska

Finnegan entered the collegiate ranks after an impressive prep career at Miami Online High School where she was coached by her father, Charles. Ashley was voted the school’s most athletic student after earning a top-20 ranking in the state of Florida as a senior. She won her district championship at No. 1 singles and advanced to the semifinals in both singles and doubles play at the Florida state individual tournament. As a junior, Finnegan advanced to two ITF Grade 5 finals and won an ITF doubles title. Her accomplishments extended off the courts, as she posted a perfect 4.0 grade-point average during her career and was awarded her school’s Algebra II award.

 

Personal

The daughter of Charles and Dianne Finnegan, Ashley was born on March 14, 1988 and has two sisters, Caitlin, 17, and Chelsea, 15. Ashley is majoring in journalism and political science.