April 14, 2004
ATLANTA – No. 39 Georgia Tech women’s tennis team (11-9, 4-4 ACC) will open the ACC Championships Friday at 12 p.m. against the 14th-ranked Tar Heels (18-7, 4-4 ACC) at the Millbrook Exchange Tennis Center in Raleigh, NC. The Yellow Jackets and Tar Heels finished the regular season tied for fourth in the ACC with 4-4 records, but North Carolina recorded a 5-2 victory over the Jackets a week ago to earn the No. 4 seed in the Tournament.
“Our team is very excited about the ACC Tournament,” said Tech head coach Bryan Shelton, “and it’s hard not to be. We’ve been shooting towards this all season, and we’re definitely ready to go play and compete.”
Georgia Tech maintained its No. 39 ranking in the nation this week, according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association while the Tar Heels fell two slots from No. 12 following a loss to the Championship?s top seed, Clemson, to conclude its regular season.
“We’re playing UNC again, and I feel like we learned a lot the first time that we played them and hope that we can put that knowledge about their team to good use this time,” said Shelton. “We have a solid game plan entering the match, and now it’s just a matter of executing it.”
The Jackets have a pair of ranked players on their roster in sophomores Lyndsay Shosho and Kelly Anderson. Shosho is ranked 57th with a 9-11 dual-match record and an overall record of 17-17 at the top of the Jackets? lineup this spring while Anderson, the nation?s 72nd-ranked singles player, stands at 23-11 overall and owns a 15-4 record in dual-match play.
Seniors Sekita Grant and Maria Nieto enter their final postseason after recording career-best years in 2004. Grant currently stands at 12-7 in dual matches and 17-11 overall while Nieto owns an overall record of 19-11 and has posted a 12-5 record this spring.
Rounding out the singles lineup has been the stellar play of Alison Silverio and Lindsey Stauss. The two freshmen have been fixtures in the Nos. 3 and 4 spots in the singles lineup, with Silverio posting a 12-8 record this spring and an overall record of 21-13 and Stauss standing at 16-17 overall and 11-9 in dual-match play. Sophomore Kacie Anson has been a fixture in the No. 3 doubles position with her partner Silverio, and together, they have earned four dual-match wins this spring.
Should the Jackets defeat the Tar Heels Friday, they would next play the winner of the No.1 vs. No. 8/9 match at 10 a.m. Saturday.
ACC ChampionshipsMillbrook Exchange Tennis CenterRaleigh, NCApril 15-18, 2004
Seeds: No. 1 Clemson No. 2 Duke No. 3 Florida State No. 4 North Carolina No. 5 Georgia Tech No. 6 Wake Forest No. 7 Virginia No. 8 Maryland No. 9 NC State
