Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Vanderbilt
Racers Set to Dance in Nashville
5/7/2014 10:01:00 AM | Women's Tennis
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For only the fifth time in their history, Murray State's women's tennis team is heading to the NCAA tournament. The Racers earned the bid to the 64-team tournament by winning the Ohio Valley Conference postseason championship. Their first round match will be Friday, May 9, at Vanderbilt.
The Racers not only won the OVC postseason championship, they were the top seed heading in, after going 9-1 in the regular season. It marked the seventh OVC championship for MSU and first since 2007, their last NCAA appearance. MSU went 16-5 in the 2014 spring season, their most wins since 2007. They have won their last four matches and 10 of their last 11.
Speaking about making the NCAA tournament, head coach Olga Elkin said, "This is a great opportunity for us as a team. We're very young, so the girls will be getting valuable experience in big-time matches. It will be good for them to see the level of play that we are striving to be."
The Racers have been led by junior Andrea Eskauriatza, playing at the top singles draw. She joins two other Racers with 20+ wins, sisters Eleonore and Verginie Tchakarova. Eleonore Tchakarova leads the team with 24, the most since Hall of Famer Anna Lask had 25 in 2006. Eskauriatza has also picked up 20 doubles wins, making her the first Racer to reach 20 wins in singles and doubles since Lask in 2006.
MSU has seen Vanderbilt in the NCAA tournament before. Of their four previous appearances, three have come against the Commodores ('01, '02, '07).
The Commodores enter the NCAA tournament with a 19-6 record, having been bounced in the semifinal round of the SEC Championship. They lost to eventual winner and tournament top-seed, Georgia.
Vanderbilt boasts three All-SEC members as well as the conference Co-Freshman of the Year. Frances Altick was named to the All-SEC First Team while Marie Casares and Georgina Sellyn were named to the Second Team. Sydney Campbell was named to the All-Freshman team in addition to her Co-Freshman of the Year honors.
Altick, the Commodores No. 1, was 28-7 on the year and is ranked #53 by the ITA. Casares had an NCAA-best 21 match winning streak from October 27-April 5. She posted a team-high 31 singles wins. Sellyn also saw time at the No. 1 draw and was the winner of the 2013 Ohio Valley Regional tournament, earning a bid to the ITA National Indoor Championship.
"Vanderbilt is one of the best teams in the country," said Elkin. "But one thing I do know is the girls will fight and compete hard and leave absolutely everything out on the court."
MSU's first round match with Vanderbilt will be Friday at 1 p.m. in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt will play host for the first two rounds at the Currey Tennis Center. The winner will advance to round two to play the winner of Georgia Tech and Purdue Saturday, May 10, at 4 p.m.Â
