Jan. 5, 2011
SKILLMAN, N.J. - The Husky women's tennis team will begin the 2011 season ranked in the Top-25, as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association announced its first batch of national team and individual rankings ahead of the start of dual matches. Washington comes in at No. 23 in the first poll of the year, the same spot where it finished the 2010 season. Junior All-American Denise Dy remains entrenched in the singles Top-10 after another stellar fall campaign which saw her reach the semifinals of the ITA All-American Championships and the quarterfinals of the ITA National Indoor Championships. The San Jose, Calif. native is ranked sixth overall. The Huskies will have another tough schedule, and spend the majority of it away from home. The first dual match will be January 22 at 73rd-ranked BYU. The next day they'll face 40th-ranked Utah. Other ranked non-conference opponents include No. 18 Mississippi, No. 36 Texas A&M, No. 41 St. Mary's, No. 51 TCU, No. 57 San Diego State, and No. 67 San Diego. Washington will also open National Team Indoor Qualifying against 17th-ranked Texas for a shot to play either No. 14 Florida State or No. 37 Princeton. Pac-10 play will be a challenge as always, with defending NCAA Champion Stanford ranked No. 1, followed by No. 5 UCLA, No. 10 California, No. 19 USC, and No. 20 Arizona State. After UW at No. 23 comes Arizona at No. 49. Senior Venise Chan slipped in the latest rankings to No. 55 after being ranked ninth in the fall, but the All-American and two-time All-Pac-10 First Teamer should be able to bounce back quickly with some wins over UW's talented competition. The Huskies open next Friday, January 14, in Ann Arbor, Michigan for the Michigan Invitational, an individual tournament formatted to resemble a dual match. |
