Georgia Sports Communications/Women's Tennis
For Immediate Release, Nov. 2, 2011
ATHENS, GA.-----University of Georgia senior Chelsey Gullickson and sophomore Lilly Kimbell head to New York for the USTA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships that start Thursday.
In the first round of doubles Thursday, Gullickson/Kimbell will play the third seed in Kristy Frilling and Shannon Matthews (Notre Dame) at 10 a.m. ET. The senior Irish duo is ranked fifth nationally with a 5-2 mark after winning the Midwest Regional. Then at 3 p.m. ET, the ninth-ranked Gullickson, who is the No. 3 seed, will face Tennessee senior Natalie Pluskota. She is ranked 29th and owns a record of 8-3. Gullickson posted a pair of straight set wins over her last year.
These Bulldogs qualified for the collegiate grand slam event by winning the ITA Southeast Regional Championships last month in Gainesville, Fla. In the final, Gullickson cruised to a 6-2,7-5 win over the top seed and fifth-ranked Lauren Embree (Florida). It was her second career regional singles title. She defeated three straight Gators en route to the crown, going 6-0 at the event to improve to 13-1 on the year.
Then, Gullickson won the regional doubles title with Kimbell, and it was their first tournament as a duo. The Gullickson/Kimbell tandem is 5-0 on the year. In the regional final, they defeated their teammates in 20th-ranked Kate Fuller and Lauren Herring, 8-2. Gullickson is 15-1 in doubles this fall including 10-1 with senior Nadja Gilchrist. For her career, Gullickson is 103-26 in singles and 86-30 in doubles.
The tournament slated for Nov. 3-6 is considered the second leg of the collegiate Grand Slam, and it takes place at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The field consists of a 32 players in singles and 16 teams in doubles with a consolation draw. The field is made up of regional champions, quarterfinalists and champions of the All-American Championships and a handful of wildcards and at-large selections. Here is a link to the tournament web site:
http://www.itatennis.com/Events/USTA-ITA-Championships-Events/NationalIndoors.htm
Former Bulldog All-American Agata Cioroch captured a pair of ITA National Indoor titles in 2002-03. In doubles, All-Americans Michelle Anderson and Angela Lettiere won it in 1994 while All-Americans Vanessa Castellano and Marissa Catlin claimed the 1999 title.
Elsewhere this weekend, Fuller and Herring will be competing in the Mission Hills Desert Classic in Rancho Mirage, Calif. They will play singles and doubles from Friday-Sunday. Fuller is 9-4 while Herring is 10-3, and they are 11-6 as a team.
“These are the final tournaments of the fall, and we’re looking for everyone to finish on a positive note,” said Georgia coach Jeff Wallace. “Frank (Polito) will be going to New York with Chelsey and Lilly, and I’ll be with Kate and Lauren in California. “Chelsey and Lilly are playing with a lot of confidence after winning the regional. Kate and Lauren have had their share of impressive wins this fall too.”
