Jan. 23, 2009
Notre Dame, Ind. – The Notre Dame women’s tennis team won’t have a chance to ease into their 2009 dual-match schedule. The Irish open the spring season at 32nd-ranked Ohio State Sunday afternoon.
The 17th-ranked Irish are coming off a strong fall tournament season. The doubles duo of senior Kelcy Tefft and freshman Kristy Frilling, the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, finished the fall with a 10-1 record and advanced to the finals of the National Indoor Doubles Championship.
The Irish will look to continue their strong doubles play in the spring. Along with Tefft and Frilling at No. 1, Tefft and junior Kali Krisik are the fourth-ranked doubles team, and juniors Cosmina Ciobanu and Colleen Rielley are ranked 50th.
Notre Dame’s veteran singles lineup will team with two new faces to make a run for their 16th NCAA Championship appearance in the last 17 seasons.
Four Irish singles players are ranked in the top 65, with Frilling leading the way at 39th. Tefft is ranked 45th, just ahead of Krisik at 46th. Sophomore Kristen Rafael is ranked 62nd. Ciobanu, Rielley and senior Katie Potts will also provide key experience for the Irish. Freshman Shannon Mathews could also play a role in the singles lineup.
Notre Dame finished the 2007-08 season with a 22-8 record and were 20th in the final national poll. The Irish claimed their eighth BIG EAST title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Tefft and graduated senior Brook Buck advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Doubles Championship, while Tefft made it to the second round of the singles tournament.
The first match of the ’09 spring season gets underway at noon Sunday.
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