No. 19 Women’s Tennis Begins Homestand – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/20/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Feb. 20, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 19 women’s tennis team finally gets to play a home match. The Buckeyes have been on the road for their first eight matches of the season, but now begin a five-match homestand Saturday, as OSU plays host to DePaul and Akron. The Buckeyes battle the Blue Demons at 10 a.m. and then challenge the Zips at 7 p.m. Both matches will be played in the Jesse Owens West Recreation Center.
OSU owns a 3-0 series record against DePaul. The Buckeyes are 27-8 against teams from Conference USA and have a winning record against every team in the conference except South Florida.
The Buckeyes have played Akron twice and have won both matches. OSU owns an impressive all-time record of 98-23 versus teams from the Mid-American Conference. OSU has a winning record against every team from the MAC and has never been defeated by eight of the 13 teams.
The National Rankings
The Buckeyes are ranked a program-record 19th in the most recent rankings released by the ITA (Feb. 14). As of Dec. 15, the squad is ranked No. 3 in the Midwest Region, behind only Notre Dame and Northwestern.
We’re All Here
All eight student-athletes from last year’s NCAA-qualifying team have returned for the Buckeyes this season.
Leading the Buckeyes
Kristy Dascoli (Sr., Bradenton, Fla.), the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, is back for her final season at first singles for the Buckeye squad. She led OSU in the fall with a 10-4 record and became OSU’s all-time leader in wins. She is ranked 34th in the nation.
Monica Rincon (Jr. Lapeer, Mich.) also had a strong fall season. Rincon, who was named the ITA Midwest Region Player to Watch at the end of last year, went 7-3, and teamed up with Dascoli in doubles to notch an 8-4 record. She set the program record for most singles wins in a season with 30 last year. She is ranked No. 85 in the nation and is off to a hot start with a 6-2 dual record at No. 2 singles. Scouting DePaul
The Blue Demons enter this weekend’s match with a 5-7 record, but are on a hot streak. After starting the season 1-7, losing four matches 4-3, DePaul rebounded by winning its last four matches. They are ranked No. 13 in the Midwest Region.
The Blue Demons are led by sophomore Szilvia Keleman. She is No. 26 in the Midwest Region and has compiled a 5-5 record at No. 1. She is 1-0 in tournament play.
Scouting Akron
Akron comes to Columbus with a 1-1 record. The Zips defeated St. Bonaventure 4-3 to begin the season, but in their next match they were zapped by Xavier, 7-0
Leading the Zips is Anniken Andersen. The sophomore played No. 1 singles during the fall and hails from Oslo, Norway, where she is a renowned club player.
At the Helm
Coach Chuck Merzbacher (Minnesota, ’87), in his fifth season, has enjoyed much success since becoming the head man at OSU. He has compiled a 57-46 record, and has taken the Buckeyes from pretenders to contenders on the Big Ten and national stage. In Merzbacher’s first year, 1996-97, the team finished ninth in the Big Ten, but in only his fourth season the squad earned the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and finished third.
Off to a Fast Start
Freshman Erica Fisk (Fr. Indianapolis, Ind.) is off to a great start at OSU. She has compiled a 14-8 record. In the fall she was 9-5 in tournament play and is 5-3 in spring dual action at No. 4 singles. Her 14 wins are second most on the team. Dascoli leads the squad with 15.
All in a Weeks Work
Saturday is the best day of the week for the Buckeyes. A daily record breakdown follows.
Sunday 1-0 Monday 0-0 Tuesday 0-0 Wednesday 0-0 Thursday 0-1 Friday 1-2 Saturday 3-0
OSU’s All-Time Leader
Kristy Dascoli became OSU’s all-time record holder for singles wins when she recorded her 82nd career victory earlier this fall. She defeated Notre Dame’s Becky Varnum in the quarterfinals of the ITA Midwest Regional Nov. 5 for the record-setting win. Dascoli, who now owns a career mark of 86-43, broke the old OSU mark of 81 wins, held by Maria Olazagatsti (1977-79).
In the Win Column
In eight matches, OSU has squared off against six teams ranked nationally. The Buckeyes hold a 3-3 record against ranked teams. They defeated No. 8 UCLA (5-2), No. 62 Maryland (7-0) and No. 64 Marquette (6-1). OSU’s losses came to perennial powers No. 3 Duke and No. 7 Pepperdine. The Buckeyes also lost to No. 40 Oklahoma State.
Among the Nation’s Best
Two Buckeyes are ranked nationally in singles in the ITA rankings. Kristy Dascoli is ranked No. 34 and Monica Rincon is No. 85.
In doubles, Dascoli and Rincon are No. 17.
The Best in the Region
Regionally, four Buckeyes are ranked in singles, while two doubles teams are in the Top 10 in the Midwest Region. Kristy Dascoli is ranked second. Monica Rincon follows at No. 6. Freshman Erica Fisk is rated No. 18 and sophomore Sadhaf Pervez is No. 22. In doubles, Dascoli and Rincon are ranked second. The tandem of Pervez and Lindsay Williams holds the No. 9 spot. The duo has recorded wins over ranked teams in its last three outings. When they played together in the fall the duo defeated No. 30 Nasser/Cheng of Northwestern, No. 19 Embry/Taheny of Purdue and No. 32 Anderson/Blanch of Indiana.
The Big Ten Tourney
This season, the Buckeyes have the honor of hosting the Big Ten Tennis Championships at the Stickney Tennis Center. All 11 conference schools will compete in the tournament, scheduled for April 26-29, 2001. The tournament champion receives the Big Ten’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.
The Big Ten is Tough
Once again this season, the competition in the Big Ten will be tough, as nine conference teams, including Ohio State, are ranked by the ITA. OSU has the highest ranking at No. 19, followed by Northwestern (20), Illinois (27), Minnesota (42), Iowa (49), Indiana (50), Michigan (57), Purdue (71) and Penn State (72).
The Spring Schedule
The Buckeyes face a number of strong opponents in the spring. In addition to the conference schools, the Buckeyes have seven other ranked programs, including three Top 20 teams, on their schedule. Ohio State will face No. 3 Duke, No. 11 Notre Dame and No. 14 Tennessee. Other ranked opponents include Kentucky (34), Maryland (62), Marquette (64) and UNLV (69).
Highlights of 1999-2000
In 1999-00, the Buckeyes were 18-8 overall and 9-2 in Big Ten play. The team finished third in the Big Ten tournament after earning the No. 1 seed. The team qualified for the NCAA championships for the second-consecutive season in a row. In addition the team earned the highest ranking in program history (No. 22), tied the school record for wins in a season (18) and went undefeated (11-0) at home. Earned first post-season NCAA win by defeating Miami (Fla.).
Kristy Dascoli, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree, qualified for the national tournament for the third consecutive season. She is the only player in OSU history to qualify for the NCAA tournament. Dascoli was undefeated in conference play during the regular season and was named the Big Ten Player of the Month for April. The senior complied an overall record of 29-11 and was 19-3 at No. 1 singles in the spring.
Monica Rincon partnered with Dascoli to qualify for the NCAA Doubles Championship. The duo ended the season ranked No. 18 after an an upset win in the first round. Rincon set a program record for most wins in a season (30). She ended the season ranked No. 9 in the Midwest Region.
