Cristina Stancu
| School: |
Texas A&M University |
| Year: |
Senior |
| Home Town: |
Constanta |
| Home State: |
|
| Home Country: |
Romania |
| High School: |
Liceul cu Program Sportiv Nicolae Rotaru |
| Height: |
5-8 |
| Weight: |
|
| Birth Date: |
Saturday, March 10, 1990 |
| Dominant Hand: |
Right |
| Major: |
Undecided |
| Singles Record: |
18-10 |
| Doubles Record: |
13-9 |
• NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team (No. 1 Doubles)
• NCAA Doubles Championship at-large berth
• No. 17 final doubles ranking (Texas A&M record-high for final doubles ranking)
• No. 7 national doubles ranking on January 3 and March 26 (Texas A&M record-high doubles ranking for preseason and regular season ranking)
• ITA Texas Region doubles champion
• No. 63 in final singles rankings
• All-SEC Second Team
• SEC Player of the Week (Feb. 13)
• SEC Academic Honor Roll
AT TEXAS A&M
2012-13 (JUNIOR): In her first year at Texas A&M, was named to the NCAA Championship all-tournament team at the No. 1 line and received an at-large bid to the 32-team NCAA Doubles Championship with freshman compatriot Stefania Hristov...The A&M tandem was ranked as high as a school-record No. 7 in the nation in doubles during the regular season and finished the season ranked 17th, the highest final ranking in school history, after falling to ninth-ranked Hermon Brhane and Whitney Ritchie of Oklahoma in the NCAA Doubles Championship first round, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4...Was No. 2 in the ITA Texas Region final doubles rankings...Finished second on the team in doubles victories with a 24-13 overall record...Went 13-7 in dual matches – all with Hristov – going 11-7 at the No. 1 line and 2-0 at No. 2...Went 3-3 in SEC play, with six other matches going unfinished...Stancu and Hristov went 6-8 against ranked opponents, including four top-10 victories...Posted an 8-3 victory against eighth-ranked Kristie Ahn and Nicole Gibbs of Stanford in the national championship match...Was second on the team for most singles wins with a 26-14 record...Went 17-8 in dual matches, including 14-8 at the No. 2 line and 3-0 at No. 3...Was 10-12 against ranked opponents...Highest ranked win came against Florida’s 11th-ranked Sofie Oyen in straight sets at the No. 2 singles line to help the Aggies defeat the then two-time defending national champion and fourth-ranked Gators, 4-3, ending Florida’s 37-match SEC regular-season win streak...Named to the All-SEC second team...Garnered SEC Player of the Week honors on Feb. 13 after posting two ranked wins apiece in singles and doubles at the ITA National Team Indoor Championship and leading A&M to back-to-back wins against No. 11 Texas and No. 12 Virginia...Longest win streak was five matches, accomplished three times...FALL RESULTS: Was second on the team in doubles victories with a 10-3 record and entered the spring ranked a school-record high No. 7 in the nation and No. 1 in the Texas Region with Hristov...First paired with Hristov in the third tournament of the fall season, the ITA Texas Regional...The Romanian duo went 6-0, including a 9-7 victory over sixth-ranked Samantha Adams and Kenna Kilgo of Texas Tech in the round of 16, en route to the ITA Texas Regional championship and an automatic berth to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships...Stancu and Hristov finished the fall season 8-1, including 2-1 against ranked opponents...Also competed in doubles at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships with former Maryland teammate Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar...Went 8-4 in singles, including 2-3 against nationally ranked opponents...In her A&M debut, defeated Marija Milutinovic of Ole Miss and went on to reach the semifinals at the Duke Fab Four Invitational...Entered the spring ranked 45th in the nation and No. 3 in the Texas Region in singles.
AT MARYLAND
2011-12 (SOPHOMORE): Compiled team highs in wins with 23 overall, including eight in Atlantic Coast Conference play, at the No. 1 singles position and earned All-ACC honors...Also recorded a team-best 10 wins over nationally ranked opponents...Was ranked as high as No. 26 nationally in singles by the ITA...Received a bid to the NCAA Singles Championship and defeated future Texas A&M teammate Nazari Urbina, 7-6 (3), 6-0 in the opening round...Was the first Maryland player to win the USTA/ITA Atlantic Region championship, earning an automatic bid to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships...Posted her highest ranked singles win by defeating then-No. 15 Emily Fraser of Virginia in straight sets in the Terps' one-point loss to the seventh-ranked Cavaliers on March 17, 2012...Moved to No. 2 doubles midway through the season and paired with Vroni Van Berlo to win nine matches at that spot.
2010-11 (FRESHMAN): Joined the Howard Joffe-coached Terps midway through the season and went 3-1 in singles and 2-3 in doubles...Contributed right away, winning her debut match against No. 31 FSU's Federica Suess 6-1, 6-2 at No. 5 singles on April 8, 2011...Also won singles matches in dual matches against No. 54 Wake Forest and 33rd-ranked N.C. State...Teamed up with Jordan Hansbrough for a win at No. 3 doubles for an 8-5 over the Wolfpack's Joelle Kissell and Ashley Miller (April 16).
PREVIOUS ATHLETIC EXPERIENCE: Top tournament singles finishes include champion of the ITF $10,000 tournament in Craiova, Romania, in 2009 and a semifinalist finish at the 2009 Bucharest ITF $10,000...Won three ITF doubles titles...Highest world-ranked win was against No. 172 Julia Cohen (USA) in the round of 32 at the Zlin 2010 ITF tournament...Most memorable athletic moment is when she won her first ITF $10,000 tournament in Craiova, Romania, in 2009...Three of her five matches were against seeded opponents, including a straight-set victory over Natasa Zoric of Serbia, who was ranked as high as 388 in the world.
PERSONAL: Cristina Madalina Stancu is the daughter of Marian and Jonela Stancu...Began playing tennis when she was 7 years old...Was recruited by several of the top women’s tennis programs in the United States, including Florida, Virginia and Baylor...Transferred to Texas A&M because “It’s a great school from the academic point of view and it also is an amazing school for athletes. I love the people in Texas. I love their passion for the sport and also the fact that we are all like a big family. Another reason I chose A&M is because of Coach Howard Joffe, who previously recruited me to Maryland. He is an amazing guy and a great coach who helped me improve more in one semester than others helped in years”...Hobbies include painting, listening to music and long walks on the beach...Is fluent in Romanian, Spanish and English, speaks French at a conversational level and understands Italian...Goal is to speak fluently in 10 languages...A 2012-13 Champs/Texas A&M scholar athlete and a member of the 2013 spring SEC academic honor roll...Majoring in agricultural communication and journalism...Born March 10, 1990 in Constanta, Romania.
STANCU UP CLOSE:
Favorites:
Favorite Aggie tradition: Midnight Yell
Favorite class subject: My favorite class that I ever took was architecture
Favorite quotes: "Good friends, good books and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life" (Mark Twain)
"Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment." (Buddha)
Favorite professional tennis player: Used to be Pete Sampras and Martina Hingis, now Roger Federer
Favorite athlete (any sport): Manu Ginobili (San Antonio Spurs)
Favorite professional sports team (any sport): San Antonio Spurs
Favorite app: Pandora
Favorite type of music/musical artist: Classical music- piano, violin
Favorite food: Traditional Romanian food
Favorite book: Anna Karenina -Leo Tolstoy
Favorite movie: A Beautiful Mind
Favorite thing about the sport of tennis: The complexity of the sport
Favorite sport to play other than tennis: Basketball
Favorite vacation spot: Bali
Miscellaneous Questions
The person who has had the greatest impact on my athletic career: My parents and my junior coach, Daniel Dragu, and right now Coach Joffe is making even a greater impact taking my tennis to a different level
The accomplishment (athletic or non-athletic) that I am most proud of: Receiving an incredible education and being able to play the sport that I love every day.
The best tennis player I have ever played against: Julia Cohen
My best non-athletic talent: Painting, drawing
The reality show I would most like to participate in is: Survivor
People have told me that I look like (name of celebrity): Marion Cotillard
The most famous athlete I have met: Rafa Nadal
When I was little, I dreamed I would be an: Architect
Something I've always wanted to do but haven't: Have a major in architecture or design
The person I would most like to meet: Albert Einstein
Few people know that: My actual hobbies are napping and eating
The best advice I ever received: Treat others as you would like to be treated
My dream job is: Fashion Design Company
