FORT WORTH, Texas - After learning its opponent and destination for the opening rounds of the 2009 NCAA Team Championship, the 28th-ranked women's tennis team will send a singles entry and a doubles squad to compete in the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships.
Junior
Nina Munch-Soegaard earned the Mountain West Conference's automatic bid as the highest ranked singles player in the league, garnering the ninth-seed in the tournament and All-America status. Per ITA regulations, if a player is listed as one of the top-16 seeds in the NCAA Singles Championships, that player gains automatic All-America status. The Amarillo, Texas native becomes the fourth singles All-American in TCU history, joining
Nicole Leimbach (2006),
Story Tweedie-Yates (2005) and Rene Simpson (1988).
The 16th-ranked Munch-Soegaard has enjoyed a successful season, capturing the Wilson/ITA Southwest Regional Singles Championship and advancing to the semifinals of the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championship semifinals. The two-time Panhandle Sports Hall of Fame selection saw her biggest wins come against reigning NCAA Singles Champion No. 11 Amanda McDowell from Georgia Tech and No. 6 Fani Chifchieva from Auburn.
TCU will also send the 39th-ranked senior doubles tandem of
Macall Harkins and
Anna Sydorska for the NCAA Doubles Championship, also earning the MWC automatic bid as the highest ranked pairing in league. The duo has teamed up for a 12-8 record this spring, including a 4-1 clip against the MWC. The pairing made their second appearance at the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships this fall and advanced into the semifinals for the second-straight year. Last season, Harkins and Sydorska defeated Georgia Tech's team of McCray and Miller to advance into the round of 16.
Sydorska, making her third NCAA Doubles Championship appearance, is closing in on the pinnacle of TCU's career doubles wins list. Currently owning a 103-42 (.710) doubles record, the Lviv, Ukraine native has the second-most doubles wins in program history and sits just two victories shy of matching Lori Nelson (105) for the most all-time.
The singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 20-25 at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas following the conclusion of the NCAA Team Championship (May 15-19). Texas A&M University will serve as host.
