"Melissa is a senior who had a great freshman year and has been hampered by injuries since then. It looks like she is pretty much fully recovered and will finish her career on a real high note. She's a hard worker, has a lot of team spirit, good leadership and can hopefully carry that off and finish well this spring in both singles and doubles."
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
SENIOR (FALL 2005): Finished the fall campaign with a 3-4 singles record...Partnered with Samantha Orlin, went 3-1 in doubles competition...Compiled a 2-2 mark when paired with Ghizela Schutte...Along with Orlin, took second place in the first doubles flight at the Furman Fall Classic, defeating Wisconsin's Nicole Beck and Liz Carpenter, 8-0, and Clemson's Daniela Alvarez and Federica van Adrichem, 8-3, but falling to Vanderbilt's Amanda Fish and Taka Bertrand, 8-3...After replacing Blakely Griffith in first-flight singles, came away with a third-place finish following a defeat of Vanderbilt's Liberty Sveke, 6-3, 6-4...Paired with Orlin once again, she took home a second-place showing from the SEC Coaches Tournament after winning her first three matches before falling in the finals to Georgia's Darya Ivanov and Evgenia Subbotina, 8-5.
JUNIOR (2004-05): Schaub continued to fight through injuries en route to a successful season...She had a blazing start to the year by winning 10 of her first 11 singles matches...That effort includes five successive victories out of the gate...Among that streak was a dramatic comeback in the No. 5 position versus Amy Walgenbach of Purdue which helped the Orange and White snare its first win on the campaign...In that final and deciding match, Schaub staved off a pair of match points in the third set and then tallied the first three points in the tiebreaker on the way to a 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) triumph...She followed that performance with a convincing 6-4, 6-3 victory over Illinois' Alejandra Cuadra to help Tennessee topple the Fighting Illini, 4-3...Schaub also played an integral role in the Lady Vols' No. 1 doubles position, where she teamed up with Sabita Maharaj...The tandem registered a 5-2 mark overall, which helped spark wins against No. 27 Indiana, No. 32 Wake Forest, No. 38 LSU, No. 52 Arkansas and No. 65 Ohio State...During the St. Mary's Classic, Schaub earned the flight four championship after downing North Carolina State's Agustina Arechavalet, 6-2, 6-2, Marti Morris of Furman, 6-4, 6-1, and Wake Forest's Jenna Loeb, 7-5, 6-2...Schaub joined forces with Bryce Marable to claim the flight two final at the event, as well, coming back from 4-1 and 6-4 deficits.
SOPHOMORE (2003-04): Despite being hindered by injury throughout the season, Schaub made a solid contribution in UT's double lineup...Overall, Schaub owned a doubles record of 16-14, including a 9-7 mark with Tammy Encina at the No. 1 position...Recorded three doubles point-clinching victories...While teamed with Sabita Maharaj, Schaub captured a crucial win at the No. 2 position to clinch the doubles point in UT's 4-3 victory over No. 16 Kentucky on April 4...Was sidelined for Tennessee's three NCAA Tournament matches due to injury...Recorded a 2-5 record in singles play.
FRESHMAN (2002-03): Schaub enjoyed a strong start to her collegiate career, compiling a 16-11 dual match singles record and finishing the year with a national ranking of sixth in doubles with Vilmarie Castellvi en route to claiming All-America honors...Won nine of her first 10 dual matches of the season at the three singles position...Clinched UT's 4-3 win over Michigan on Jan. 26 by downing Kavitha Tipirneni, 6-4, 6-2...Registered her first win over a ranked opponent by dropping No. 60 Tina Hojnik of Georgia, 1-6, 7-6(7), (10-8), on April 12...Played in four tournaments during the fall, producing a 6-7 record...Posted two victories at the St. Mary's Fall Classic en route to a matchup in the final of flight No. 3 with teammate Sabita Maharaj...Closed the fall with three straight wins at the SEC Coaches Tournament...Along with Castellvi, amassed a 19-8 dual match record in doubles...Notched 10 doubles victories over ranked foes, including defeats of second-ranked DeRoo and Johnson of Duke on March 23 and No. 2 Cioroch and Grey of Georgia on April 12...The pair earned second-team All-SEC recognition...The tandem automatically earned All-America kudos by virtue of their No. 4 seeding in the NCAA Doubles Tournament.
HIGH SCHOOL:
A two-sport athlete for Lexington High School, Schaub earned four varsity letters in tennis and basketball...She served as the captain of her tennis squad all four years...Her team won four straight conference and district championships during her tenure...As a senior, Schaub took Lexington to a third-place finish at the state tournament...Was a first-team all-state selection all four years...Won the individual state title in singles her senior season...Schaub was named the Northwest District and Ohio Heartland Conference Player of the Year during her four years with LHS...She competed at the Fed Cup and Weightman Cup as a junior...Won a silver ball at the National Indoors in doubles during her junior days as well...Ranked as one of the top 20 juniors by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) four consecutive years...Recognized with the Ohio Tennis Coaches Association Sportsmanship Award in 2000...Named honorable mention in basketball in 2000 and 2001.
PERSONAL:
Schaub is pursuing a degree in psychology...Would like to coach at the collegiate level after her playing career...Enjoys listening to music and hanging out with friends in her spare time...Her father played tennis for Ohio University from 1975-79...Before entering UT, stated that the biggest thrills in her sport were signing with the University of Tennessee and winning the state singles championship her senior year...Models her game after Jennifer Capriati...Has one brother, Ty, 20, and one sister, Courtney, 15...Melissa Ashley Schaub, the daughter Mindy Cooper and Ron Schaub, was born on Jan. 12, 1984, in Lexington, Ohio.
