College Tennis News - Bulldogs Off To Tampa For ITA Southeast Regional

ATHENS-----Five members of the Georgia women’s tennis team will be in action Friday at the USTA/ITA Southeast Regional Championships in Tampa, Fla.

A four-day singles and doubles tournament on the campus of South Florida, it serves as a qualifying event for the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships, considered the second leg of the collegiate Grand Slam. The Indoor Championships are held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. from Nov. 8-11.

A total of 16 schools from around Georgia and Florida comprise this year’s ITA Southeast Regional field. The Bulldogs entered in the singles are Maho Kowase, Lauren Herring, Kate Fuller, Lilly Kimbell and Makenzie Craft. Georgia will have two teams in the doubles field in Fuller/Herring and Kimbell/Kowase. Last year, Kimbell paired with then senior Chelsey Gullickson to win the regional doubles title over Fuller and Herring. Gullickson won the regional singles title too.

Kowase owns a 10-2 singles record this fall while Fuller and Herring are both 7-1. Craft is 4-2 while Kimbell is 1-2. The Fuller/Herring duo is 6-2 while Kimbell/Kowase remain perfect at 4-0.

“We’re excited about an opportunity to compete in one of the toughest regions in the country,” said Georgia coach Jeff Wallace. “With players from Georgia and Florida, we know the competition is going to be very good. I like how we’ve been practicing and playing in our first couple of tournaments this fall, and this weekend should be fun.”