No. 20 Women’s Tennis Heads East – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/8/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Feb. 8, 2001
%^$COLUMBUS, Ohio – The 20th-ranked women’s tennis team journeys to College Park, Md. for matchups against No. 3 Duke and No. 62 Maryland. OSU will meet the Blue Devils Friday then return to the courts Saturday to face the Terrapins. OSU has not fared well against ACC teams, compiling a 4-14 all-time record, but this year’s squad is prepared to add some more wins to the victory column.%^$
%^$In the all-time series versus Duke, OSU is 0-4. Last year, the Buckeyes took the Blue Devils to the wire before falling, 4-5, in Durham. The Buckeyes own a 1-1 career record against Maryland.%^$
%^$The National Rankings
%^$The Buckeyes are ranked a program-record 20th in the most recent rankings released by the ITA (Feb. 7th). 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.) 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 record holder for singles wins with 82. In her career she now has amassed 85 victories. She is ranked a program-record 19th.%^$
%^$Monica Rincon (Jr. Lapeer, Mich.) also had a strong fall season. Rincon, who was named the ITA Midwest Region Player to Watch at the end of last year, went 7-3, and teamed up with Dascoli in doubles to notch an 8-4 record. She set the program record for most singles wins in a season with 30 last year.%^$
%^$Scouting Duke
%^$No. 3 Duke is loaded. The Blue Devils are 1-0 on the year and feature three of the best players in the nation in Ansley Cargill (No. 2), Kathy Sell (No. 14) and Amanda Johnson (No. 16). Their leader is the freshman sensation Cargill. She won the Riviera All-American in October and most recently claimed victory at the Adidas Tennis Classic last week in Orlando, Fla. Cargill placed second in the ITA National Indoors held Feb. 1-4, in Dallas.%^$
%^$Duke also features a strong doubles lineup. Johnson teams with Megan Miller to form the No. 6 team in the country, while the No. 24 duo is made up of Cargill and Hillary Adams.%^$
%^$Scouting Maryland
%^$Maryland is 2-0 on the year and is ranked 62nd.%^$
%^$They defeated Georgetown, 7-0, and West Virginia, 6-1. The Terrapins are No. 4 in the East Region and are led by All-ACC performer Delila Causevic. The sophomore posted a 7-5 fall record at No. 1 singles.%^$
%^$A Perfect Start
%^$The Buckeyes are a perfect 3-0 on the year. They defeated West Virginia (7-0), Marquette (6-1) and Colorado (7-0). OSU has won every match in straight sets except one and has only lost one match on the year. This is the team’s fourth best start in the past 15 years. The Buckeyes started the season 6-0 in 1995-96 and 1989-90. Last year, when OSU won the Big Ten regular season title, the Buckeyes began the season 5-0 before falling to Duke, 4-5.%^$
%^$At the Helm
%^$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, but 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.%^$
%^$Double Trouble
%^$In the first three matches OSU’s doubles teams have a combined 9-0, record outscoring their opponents, 72-25. The tandem of Dascoli and Rincon lead the way by besting their opponents by a combined 24-4.%^$
%^$Among the Nation’s Best
%^$Two Buckeyes are ranked nationally in singles in the ITA rankings. Kristy Dascoli is ranked a program-record No. 19 in singles, breaking her previous high of No. 32. Monica Rincon is ranked No. 83.%^$
%^$In doubles, Dascoli and Rincon achieved a program-best ranking of No. 5. The tandem of Laura Maloney and Erica Fisk is No. 39.%^$
%^$The Best in the Region
%^$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. In that streak, they 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 eight conference teams, including Ohio State, are ranked by the ITA. Northwestern has the highest ranking at No. 15, followed by Ohio State (20), Illinois (33), Minnesota (41), Iowa (48), Indiana (50), Michigan (56) and Purdue (57).%^$
%^$The Team Indoors
%^$This season, the Buckeyes have been invited to participate in the ITA Team Indoors in Madison, Wis., Feb. 15-18. Sixteen of the Top 25 teams in the nation will participate in the prestigious event.%^$
%^$Highlights of 1999-2000
%^$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.).%^$
%^$Kristy Dascoli, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree, qualified for the national tournament for the third consecutive season. She is the only player in OSU history to qualify for the NCAA tournament.%^$
%^$Monica Rincon partnered with Dascoli to qualify for the NCAA Doubles Championship. The duo ended the season ranked No. 18 after an upset win in the first round. Rincon set a program record for most wins in a season (30).%^$
%^$The Spring Schedule
%^$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. 12 Notre Dame and No. 15 Tennessee. Other ranked opponents include Kentucky (34), Maryland (62), Marquette (64) and UNLV (67).
