April 10, 2014
The #32-ranked Georgia Tech women’s tennis team (9-7, 6-4 ACC) will host the Pittsburgh Panthers (4-11, 0-11 ACC) on Friday for its Aces for a Cure pink day match. The Yellow Jackets will face the Panthers at 4 p.m. on Friday at the Ken Byers Tennis Center and will also host #68 Syracuse (4-11, 4-6 ACC) on Sunday at 11 a.m.
Live stats for both matches can be found here.
Pink Day – Aces for a Cure
Fans are encouraged to pink to Friday’s match against the Panthers to support Georgia Tech’s Aces for A Cure initiative. There will be a donation box available at the match so fans can donate to the Susan G. Komen foundation. The Yellow Jackets will support pink shirts, wrist bands and hats in support of the cause. The Jackets will donate $10 for every ace during the match.
Parking
For Friday’s match against Pittsburgh, parking will be available on Fowler street and in the McCamish lot. For Sunday’s match against Syracuse, parking will be available on Fowler street, eighth street and the McCamish lot.
Singles Spotlight: Muriel Wacker
Senior Muriel Wacker has won four-straight singles matches and owns a team best 9-1 record in ACC singles play. Wacker scored the only point for the Yellow Jackets against #9 Virginia and #17 Clemson with her singles wins on court five and then captured victories against Virginia Tech and NC State. During the weekend against Clemson and N.C. State, Wacker went undefeated in both singles and doubles play, winning both doubles matches alongside partner Natasha Prokhnevska. The two are 8-7 this season on court two and are 5-5 in conference matches.
A Preview of Pittsburgh (4-11, 0-11)
All four of the Panthers’ wins this season have come against non-conference opponents. Both Audrey Ann Blakely and Taylor Washington have spilt time on court one. Blakely owns a team-best 3-6 ACC singles record. The two have paired up to go 2-3 on court one in doubles play.
Scouting #68 Syracuse (4-11, 4-6 ACC)
Maddie Kobelt has gone 5-4 at the number one singles spot, and has an overall ACC record of 6-3. Kobelt plays alongside Valeria Salazar on court one in doubles . The duo has gone 5-8 so far this spring. The Orange’s four wins have come against #48 Virginia Tech, #25 Florida State, #34 Boston College and against Pittsburgh.
Home Sweet Home
The Yellow Jackets wrap up the 2013-14 regular season with a four game homestand that begins this weekend with Pittsburgh and Syracuse. The Jackets will play at home after playing 11 of their 16 dual matches on the road. Tech is 3-2 at the Ken Byers Tennis Center this season, capturing wins against Old Dominion (4-0), #46 Wake Forest (5-2) and #64 N.C. State (5-2).
Winning the Doubles Point
The Yellow Jackets are 8-1 when winning the doubles point this season and 1-6 when losing the doubles point. Tech captured the doubles point against #25 Nebraska, Old Dominion, #27 Tennessee, #22 Notre Dame, #32 Florida State, Maryland, #64 N.C. State and #66 Virginia Tech. Tech lost to the doubles point to #43 Wake Forest, but won the match. Against #46 Boston College, Tech won the doubles point, but lost the match.
Dynamic Doubles Duo
The sophomore doubles duo of Megan Kurey and Kendal Woodard are ranked #5 in the nation in the doubles rankings after debuting this season at the #4 spot. In the Feb. 11th poll, the pair was ranked as the #1 doubles team. The tandem is 8-4 together this spring and had won 14-straight doubles matches together, before a loss to Georgia snapped their winning streak. Kurey and Woodard are 6-4 in their last 10 matches.
Kurey and Woodard won the 2013 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships doubles title in November. The tandem is 22-8 together this year and 9-7 against nationally ranked opponents.
Jackets in the Rankings
The Georgia Tech women’s tennis team checks in at #32 in the most 2014 ITA women’s rankings which was released on April 8. The doubles tandem of Megan Kurey and Kendal Woodard are ranked at #5 in the doubles rankings. Tech’s highest ranking this season was at #19 which was on both January 21 and February 25.
National Champions
The #4-ranked sophomore doubles duo of Megan Kurey and Kendal Woodard capped off an impressive fall season by winning the 2013 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships doubles title. Kurey and Woodard captured the national indoor doubles title on Nov. 10, 2013 after defeating Louisville’s Julia Fellerhoff and Rebecca Shine in the championship match.
The tandem went 14-4 this fall and owned an impressive 7-3 record against nationally ranked opponents. The duo finished off the season on a nine-match winning streak, including three straight victories during national indoors on their way to the national doubles title. Kurey and Woodard also won the USTA/ITA Southeast Regional Doubles Title in the fall.
Follow the Jackets
Fans are encouraged to follow Georgia Tech women’s tennis on Twitter, @GT_WTEN, and like the Yellow Jackets on Facebook, GTWomensTennis, for an inside look at the program.
Next Up
The Yellow Jackets wrap up their final regular season weekend at home when they host #3 North Carolina on April 17 at 3 p.m. and #1 Duke on April 19 at noon. Senior Muriel Wacker will be honored on Senior Day which will take place prior to the Duke match.
