Sept. 21, 2006
The Notre Dame women’s tennis team opens the 2006 fall season this weekend at the 21st Annual Roberta Allison Invitational in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The Irish join Auburn, Auburn-Montgomery, Birmingham-Southern, Mississippi State, UNC Greensboro, Samford, Vanderbilt and host Alabama.
Notre Dame went 27-2 last year and finished No. 5 nationally after reaching the quarterfinals of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. The Irish, who entered the NCAA Championship at No. 2, were rated as the top squad in the Midwest Region for the first time since 1999-2000.
Senior co-captains, Christian and Catrina Thompson, will once again lead the Irish. The ITA ranked the twins as the No. 3 doubles team in the country entering the season. The duo was named ITA All-Americans in doubles for the second consecutive season in 2006. They went 22-7 and finished the year at No. 10 after climbing as high as No. 1. The Thompsons also captured the doubles title at the 2006 Riviera ITA All-American Championships.
In singles, Catrina (ranked No. 22 in singles to open the fall) advanced into the second round of the NCAA Championship before losing to 2005 NCAA Champion, Zuzana Zemenova of Baylor. Catrina went 29-12 overall and 18-6 in dual action. She was named Most Outstanding Performer at the 2006 BIG EAST Tournament for the second consecutive year. Christian (ranked No. 91 in singles to open the fall) went 22-12 overall and 15-9 in dual action. She spent most of the spring at No. 2 going 13-8.
Notre Dame also returns junior Brook Buck, as well as sophomores Katie Potts and Kelcy Tefft. Buck (ranked No. 66 in singles to open the fall) went 24-10 in singles last season, including 18-7 in dual action. She played most of the year at No. 3 for the Irish going 14-6. She posted an even more impressive record at No. 2 with a 4-1 mark. Buck was 18-2 in regional matches and led Notre Dame with seven match-clinching victories. She also registered a 24-4 record in doubles with Tefft. The duo (ranked No. 27 in doubles to open the fall) went 19-3 at No. 2 doubles in dual matches.
Tefft, who closed the campaign with a seven-match winning streak, went 28-5 overall and 20-4 in dual action during her rookie season last year. She was a perfect 6-0 at No. 2, 14-4 at No. 4 and even recorded three victories over ranked opponents. She was named to the 2006 BIG EAST All-Tournament team.
Potts went 29-5 last season to equal Catrina Thompson and departed senior Kristian Stastny for the team-high in victories. She was almost unbeatable in dual play. Potts went 23-2 and 18-1 at No. 6. She even posted a 16-match winning streak that dated from Nov. 22 to Mar. 10.
Notre Dame will have the following eight players compete this weekend: Buck, freshman Cosmina Ciobanu, freshman Kali Krisik, Potts, freshman Colleen Rielley, Tefft, Catrina Thompson and Christian Thompson.
The tournament will begin Friday and run through Sunday at the UA Tennis Complex. Matches will begin at 8 a.m. each morning and admission is free. Full results will be available on und.com.
— ND —