2007-2008 Yellowjacket Tennis Preview

The women's tennis team begins their fall season with the Georgia Tech Classic this weekend.

The team is coming off a year of unprecedented success, winning two national championships, including Tech's first NCAA-sanctioned championship in late May. The team defeated UCLA in the finals, which were played at UGA.

"The things that we expect haven't changed. It's just to keep improving and to get better every day," said Head Coach Bryan Shelton.

Coach Shelton has led the team to success and turned around a once mediocre program.

He has guided Tech to three straight ACC Championships as well as led the team to its first NCAA team berth. Last year, he earned the ITA/Wilson Coach of the Year award.

Tech has lost a few players from last year, with Taryn Rudman and NCAA tournament MVP Alison Silverio graduating.

"We know that [Silverio] brought more than the MVP at the NCAAs [to the team]. She brought leadership, production on the court and an attitude to the court that was second to none," Shelton said.

The team returns a core group that has just two seniors, one junior and two sophomores.

No. 5 Kristi Miller is set to lead the team. The All-American ended last season with a loss in the quarterfinals of the singles NCAA tournament. She is entering her last year at Tech after finding a considerable amount of success on The Flats.

No. 64 Whitney McCray returns as the other senior on the team. She was an integral part of last season's doubles team, pairing with Miller to anchor one of the top teams. The two return as the No. 3 doubles team.

Christy Striplin is the sole junior coming back to the team. She provided a crucial point in last year's NCAA championship, coming back after losing the first set to win the match and swing Tech the point.

The two sophomores provided large boosts to the teams at different times in the season.

No. 60 Amanda McDowell ended the season by winning her 10th straight match and a team-high 39 on the year. She was undefeated throughout the NCAA tournament. This included a 6-1, 6-0 victory in the NCAA finals matchup.

"[McDowell] became the catalyst for our team. She was the who got everything ignited for every single match," Shelton said.

No. 23 Kirsten Flower played another crucial role on the team, helping her team early on in the season in the ITA Indoor National Championship tournament. She won all four of her matches in straight sets and helped the team attain its first-ever No. 1 ranking. Flower also participated in the Western and Southern Financial Group Women's Open during the offseason.

Amanda Craddock, a part of last year's freshman class, has decided to part ways with the team and pursue a professional career. She was an integral part of the team on their run to the two national championships.

There are three new additions to the team.

This includes Noelle Hickey, who comes to the team from Hackensack N.J. She was ranked as a five-star recurit during the recruiting season. Fellow freshman Maya Johansson has already made an impact on the team, forming a doubles team with Flower that is already ranked No. 56 in the preseason rankings. Sasha Krupina is the last recruit to be added to the squad.

The team kicks off the season at home in front of a home crowd with the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational at the Bill Moore Tennis Center.

"We've been wanting to do something like this for a while and I think the timing is perfect. The people who may have not seen us play in Athens at the NCAA tournament have a chance to catch a quick preview of what to expect for this upcoming season," Shelton said.

The three other participants are Harvard, FSU and Georgia. Play will go on from Friday until Sunday.

"We're excited about this upcoming season, to start all over again. We'll take the experience we have from last year and use it with this new group and team," Shelton said.