Women’s Tennis Set to Open Play in the NCAA Tournament – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/7/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
May 7, 2002
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COLUMBUS, Ohio-The Ohio State women’s tennis team (19-6) will head to Knoxville, Tenn., for the first round of the 2002 NCAA Team Championships. The Buckeyes will face Alabama at 10 a.m. Friday, while host Tennessee will go up against Marshall at 2 p.m. The winners of the first-round matches will meet at 4 p.m. Saturday, with the winner advancing to the Round of 16 in Stanford, Calif. All matches in Knoxville will be played at the UT Varsity Courts. In the event of rain, they will be moved inside to the Goodfriend Tennis Center.
Extensions
The Buckeyes’ berth in the NCAA tournament marks the fourth consecutive year the squad has received an at-large bid.
The Other Bid
Senior Monica Rincon will compete in the NCAA singles championship for the first time in her career. She was a two-time qualifier to the national doubles tournament with partner Kristy Dascoli, and earned All-America honors last season after reaching the quarterfinal round.
In The Tourney
The Buckeyes have competed in the NCAA Championships four years, with an overall record of 1-4.
OSU’s NCAA History 2001 Mississippi State L 3-4 2000 Miami (Fla.) W 5-3 2000 Georgia L 0-5 1999 Louisiana State L 2-5 1996 Minnesota L 0-6
The 2001 Tourney
Last year, The Buckeyes lost a close match to Mississippi State in the opening round of the 2001 NCAA Championships, falling, 4-3, in Athens, Ga.
The match started with the Bulldogs claiming victories in two of the three doubles matches to claim the doubles point. OSU’s lone victory came at No. 3 where Erica Fisk and Claudia Castro upstaged Linda Mattsson and Yumi Ueda, 8-2. At No. 1 and No. 2 the Buckeye duos fought hard, but both fell short, 8-6, as MSU took a 1-0 lead into the singles matches.
The Buckeyes needed to win four of the six matches to come away with the upset, but it was not meant to be. OSU and MSU each won three singles matches, allowing the Bulldogs to escape with the narrow win. At No. 3 Sadhaf Pervez dropped Claudia Oliveira, 7-6 (5), 6-2. Fisk completed the sweep of her matches as she bested Anca Vasiloaica, 6-3, 7-5. Laura Maloney won the last match of her career as she dispatched Ueda, 6-3, 6-1 at No. 5.
In The Rankings
The Buckeyes are ranked 37th in the most recent release of the Omni Hotels Collegiate Tennis Rankings administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (May 1st).
The Individuals
Two Buckeyes were ranked in the Omni Hotels Collegiate Tennis Rankings (May 1st). Senior Monica Rincon is at No. 68, while sophomore Erica Fisk is ranked 96th. The doubles tandem of Rincon and Meaghan Colville is ranked 54th.
Buckeyes vs. Crimson Tide
Ohio State has faced the Crimson Tide twice, with Alabama winning both matches. The squads first met in 1988, with the Crimson Tide winning, 6-3. The last meeting was in 1991, an 8-1 UA win.
Scouting the Crimson Tide
This marks the second consecutive appearance for Alabama in the NCAA tournament. The squad, ranked 44th in the nation, is 12-10 overall and 3-9 in the Southeastern Conference.
The Alabama’s doubles tandem of Millie Begovic and Weyli Chang are ranked 56th in the nation and earned a bid to the NCAA doubles tournament.
Jenny Mainz, a graduate of Houston, is in her fifth season at the helm of the Crimson Tide.
Buckeyes vs. Lady Vols
Since 1985, Ohio State is 1-6 vs. Tennessee, including a 5-2 loss in Knoxville last season..
2001 L 2-5 A 2000 L 3-6 A 1999 L 4-5 H 1998 L 2-7 A 1987 L 1-8 N 1986 L 1-8 N 1986 W 5-4 N
Scouting the Lady Vols
The Tennessee Lady Vols are one of the strongest teams in the NCAA tournament this year. The squad amassed a 17-9 overall record on the season, including a 7-4 record in the SEC. Tennessee finished the regular season ranked 14th in the nation.
Vilmarie Castvelli leads the Lady Vols in singles competition at the No. 1 spot. Castvelli is ranked ninth in the nation in singles with an impressive 22-3 record on the season. In the fall and spring combined, Castvelli is 39-6.
No. 29-ranked Alison Ojeda is 12-7 this spring with a full season record of 24-13 and received her third bid to the NCAA singles championship. Kim Gates is ranked No. 110. Castvelli and Agnes Wiski form the No. 1 doubles team for the Lady Vols. The No. 17-ranked duo in the nation, they will compete in the NCAA doubles championship.
Mike Patrick and Sonia Hahn-Patrick are co-head coaches of the Lady Vols. This is Mike Patrick’s 15th season with Tennessee and Sonia’s fifth. The two were co-national head coaches of the year last year.
Buckeyes vs. Thundering Herd
Ohio State and Marshall have met once, with the Buckeyes posting a 7-0 victory in 1999.
Scouting the Thundering Herd
Marshall, ranked 74th in the nation, earned its spot in the NCAA tournament by winning the Mid-American Conference tournament to earn the automatic bid. The squad was 21-7 overall record this season, including an 11-1 record in the MAC.
Anna Mitina is the No. 2 singles player for the Thundering Herd.
At the helm for Marshall is Laurie Mercer. Mercer was the 2000 MAC Coach of the Year, while leading the squad to a regular season championship that same year. She is in her eighth year with the squad.
In the Conference
For the third consecutive year, the Buckeyes finished third in the Big Ten Conference. The squad had a regular-season record of 7-3 in Big Ten play to tie for second with Wisconsin. After being upset by Michigan in its first match, the loss pushed OSU to third.
A Record Set
The Buckeyes’ win over Illinois marked their 19th of the season, breaking the program record of 18 set in 1983 and 2000.
The Century
Senior Monica Rincon has 25 singles wins this season, giving her 101 for her Buckeye career. She is just the second Buckeye to do so, following her former doubles partner, Kristy Dascoli (1998-01).
Record Setters at Home
The Buckeyes had their program-record 14-match home winning streak stopped by Northwestern. The squad’s 14 home wins this season also were a program record.
Getting Closer and Closer
Monica Rincon’s 101 career wins place her second on OSU’s all-time singles wins list. At the ITA Midwest Regional Tournament Oct. 28, Rincon picked up her 81st and 82nd career wins, catapulting her ahead of Maria Olazagatsti (1977-79; 81-20) into second place. OSU’s all-time singles wins leader is Kristy Dascoli, who finished her career (1998-01) with 104 wins.
Moving Up
Monica Rincon has posted 92 doubles wins in her career, putting her fourth all-time in program history. She had been tied for fourth with former doubles partner Kristy Dascoli. Kelly Story (1989-92) is the program record holder with 118.
Moving Up
With 72 career singles wins each, Michelle Matko and Sadhaf Pervez now are in the Top 10 all-time in program history in singles wins. Matko and Pervez are tied for the fifth spot. Monica Rincon is second, just three wins behind all-time leader Kristy Dascoli.
All-Time Singles Wins at OSU
1. Kristy Dascoli, 104 (1998-01)
2. Monica Rincon, 101 (1999-present)
3. Maria Olazagatski, 81 (1977-79)
4. Linda Magid, 78 (1995-96)
5. Michelle Matko, 72 (1999-present)
5. Sadhaf Pervez, 72 (2000-present)
7. Leann Grimes, 68 (1975-78)
8. Ann Wilson, 67 (1974-77)
9. Abigail Villena, 66 (1990-93)
10. Ann Beaudoin, 65 (1971-82)
Honored
Monica Rincon was named to the 2002 All-Big Ten team, marking the third time in her career she earned all-conference honors.
The 20-win Club
Five Buckeyes have posted 20 or more wins this season – Monica Rincon (25), Michelle Matko (22), Erica Fisk (22), Lindsay Williams (21) and Sadhaf Pervez (21).
Into the Top
Meaghan Colville has 26 doubles wins this season, tying her for 10th all-time at OSU in season doubles wins. Wendy Stewart (1979) and Monica Rincon (2001) share the program record of 30 doubles wins in a season.
Sweep!
The Buckeyes have posted shutout wins over seven opponents so far this season. All of Ohio State’s shutouts have happened at home. Their record for shutouts is 11, set in 1986 and 1984.
When it’s Close
The Buckeyes are 4-1 in matches decided by one point this season. The squad topped Penn State, Maryland, Purdue and Indiana by Identical 4-3 scores. The squad’s only such loss was to Michigan.
What a Win!
Claudia Castro, playing in her first match since March 9, posting an impressive three-set victory against Indiana’s Martina Grimm to clinch Ohio State’s win. Castro won the first set before dropping the second. In the third and final set, Castro fought back from a 5-2 deficit, winning the last five points to clinch the match.
The Leaderboard
Monica Rincon and Lindsay Williams lead the Buckeyes with 18 singles wins each this spring.
Working Overtime
Lindsay Williams has had eight of her last 10 matches go to a third set or a match tiebreaker. In those matches, she has posted a record of 5-3. This season, Williams is 7-6 in three-set matches.
The Leaders
Monica Rincon leads the Buckeyes with 25 singles wins, followed by Michelle Matko and Erica Fisk with 22. In doubles, Meaghan Colville ranks first with 26 victories, with Pervez second at 24.
Getting Closer
Sophomore Erica Fisk is just five wins away from the 50-win mark for her OSU career. She was 23-18 as a freshman and is 22-14 this season.
At the Helm
Chuck Merzbacher is in his sixth season at the helm. He has enjoyed much success since becoming the head man at OSU, compiling a 90-62 record. Under the guidance of Merzbacher the program has sent the team, a singles player and a doubles tandem to the NCAA Championships the past three years. In his tenure at OSU, Merzbacher has coached two All-Americans, a two-time Big Ten Player of the Year, a Big Ten Freshman of the Year and two ITA Midwest Region Players to Watch.
A Milestone
The win over Penn State marked the 75th victory for head coach Chuck Merzbacher at the helm of the Buckeyes. He is the fastest in Buckeye history to reach 75 wins. For his career, spanning more than 11 years, he is 223-125.
Merzbacher in the Big Ten
The Buckeyes have greatly improved their standing in the Big Ten under head coach Chuck Merzbacher. The squad was ninth in his first season, followed by an eighth and a sixth place finish the next two years. The squad has finished third in the conference the last two seasons.
Last Time Out
The No. 3-seed Buckeyes lost to Michigan, 4-0, in their first action in the 2002 Big Ten Tournament in Bloomington, Ind.
Honored Again
Monica Rincon recently was named Big Ten Women’s Tennis Player of the Month March.
Rincon, the Buckeyes’ No. 1 singles player, moved up to the No. 51 spot in the national rankings, the highest ranking of her career. During the month, she went 6-1 in singles, including a five-match winning streak. Rincon, with a career record of 100-44, is just four wins away from tying the all-time mark of 104. Rincon is 17-3 in the spring and 24-8 overall this season which leads the team in wins.
The Best
The Buckeyes have posted identical 20-4 marks at the No. 1 and No. 5 singles positions. Three Buckeyes – Monica Rincon, Sadhaf Pervez and Michelle Matko – combined for the stellar mark at No. 1. At No. 5, Meaghan Colville and the three Lindsays on the OSU roster (Adams, Bryan and Williams) have combined for the outstanding mark.
Buckeyes Online
Learn more about women’s tennis and OSU’s 34 other varsity sports at the athletic department’s official Web site, ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
