Tennis team ends season

Last weekend, the Jackets women's tennis team traveled to Columbus, Ohio for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Indoor Championships. Six members of the team made the trip and the Jackets had five players in the singles bracket, more than any other team in the tournament. The Jackets got off to an up and down start on Friday. Three of the five participants for Tech won their opening round matches.

"It's a tough tournament and only 32 girls make it, so it's most of the best players in the country. For us to have five girls in the singles and a team in the doubles was a great honor for us and a great opportunity to get that many girls in the draw," said senior Kristi Miller.

Seventh seed No. 60 Amanda McDowell, ITA's South Region Champion, defeated host school Ohio State's Angela Dipastina, 6-1, 7-5. Other first round action included sixth seed, No. 5 Kristi Miller defeating No. 7 William and Mary's Megan Moulton-Levy, 7-6 (4), 6-4. Maya Johansson continued her strong fall run with a win over No. 45 Cosmina Ciobanu of Notre Dame, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5.

Unfortunately, two Jackets did lose in the first round. No. 23 Kirsten Flower battled, but eventually fell to Oklahoma's Anna Marie Constantinescu, 5-7, 7-5, 3-6. Fifth seed and sixth ranked Zuzana Zemenova of Baylor came back from a set down to beat No. 42 Christy Striplin 1-6, 6-2, 6-0.

In doubles action, Miller and Whitney McCray, the tournament's third seed and the nation's third-ranked team, blew through Boise State's Polina Kokoulina and Pichittra Thongdach, 8-2.

The second day of play marked the end of the Jackets' Fall run. In singles action, McDowell defeated a familiar opponent, No. 14 Laura Vallverdu of Miami in a close match, 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (2). Miller defeated No. 35 Samantha Murray of Northwestern in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3.

Johansson lost in the round of 16 to No. 21 Ani Mijacika, a player who has given the Jackets trouble this season. Johansson put up a fight only to lose 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 in a come-back win for Mijacika. Flower lost to No. 54 Laura Broosova of Baylor in the consolation round of 16, 6-0, 6-4. The Jackets other consolation bracket player, Striplin, lost a close game to Arizona State's No. 24 Nadia Abdala, 6-1, 5-7, 5-7. In the Quarterfinals, both Jackets left were defeated. First, Miller lost to Mijacika, 6-3, 2-6, 5-7.

"She's a good player. The courts are really fast, she plays a very aggressive style. She has a big serve and she just comes at you. You have to play very well to beat her," Miller said. McDowell lost a three set decision to Baylor's Taylor Ormond, 4-6, 6-2, 0-6.

In the doubles bracket, Miller and McCray lost to TCU's No. 14 Macall Harkins and Anna Sydorska, 8-6."Overall it was a pretty good tournament. We would have like to have had someone win it, but we had pretty good results," McDowell said.

In other Tech tennis action, freshman Noelle Hickey travelled to Florida State to participate in their invitational tournament. Hickey beat Kunigunda Dorn of Kansas, dropping just one game, 6-1, 6-0. In the second round, Hickey cruised through Liset Brito of Florida International, 6-4, 6-1 to reach the finals.

Hickey fell in the finals against host school Florida State's Katie Rybakova in three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 4-6. The Jackets open the second half of their 2007-2008 campaign at the National Collegiate Tennis Championship in Las Vegas. They will also attempt to defend their ITA National Team Indoor Championship in early February. They won the title last year after knocking off defending champion and then No. 1 squad Stanford in the semifinals. They defeated Notre Dame in the finals and acquired their first ever No. 1 ranking.