Michigan Finishes Season Ranked 19th Nationally
6/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
SKILLMAN, N.J. -- The University of Michigan women's tennis team concluded the 2008 dual-match season with a No. 19 national ranking, as recently announced by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). It marks the program's highest year-ending national ranking since 1997, when the Wolverines earned their first trip to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and finished the season as the No.16-ranked team in the country.
U-M finished its first season under head coach Ronni Bernstein with a 19-6 overall record and a 9-1 mark in the Big Ten Conference. The Maize and Blue advanced to the Big Ten Championship title match for the fourth straight season and reached the second round of the NCAA Championship for the third straight year.
Junior Chisako Sugiyama(Parsippany, N.J./The Montclair Kimberley Academy) completed another stellar season with a final national singles ranking of No. 50, which marks the highest final ranking for a Wolverine singles player since 1997, when Sarah Cyganiak (1994-97) finished at No. 43. Sugiyama tallied a team-best 27-12 overall record, including an 18-5 dual-match mark primarily at the No. 1 position. She went undefeated in 10 Big Ten matches for the second straight season, which earned her a second straight All-Big Ten nomination and three Big Ten Athlete of the Week citations. Sugiyama capped off a memorable year with her first career invitation to the NCAA Singles Championship, in which she reached the second round.
Sophomore Tania Mahtani(Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Palos Verdes Peninsula HS) earned her first year-ending national singles ranking, finishing at No. 118. Mahtani posted her second straight 20-win campaign (21-15) while going 13-9 in dual-match play at Nos. 1-4 and 7-3 in the Big Ten.
Sugiyama and Mahtani finished 2008 listed as the 38th-ranked doubles tandem in the nation. The pair compiled a team-best 22-9 overall record, including an 18-7 dual-match mark at No. 1. Sugiyama and Mahtani performed flawlessly during the Big Ten season, posting a perfect 10-0 record at the top spot.
Michigan finished the year with a No. 2 ranking in the Midwest Region, marking the program's highest year-ending regional ranking since 1994 (No. 2). Sugiyama (No. 5), freshman Whitney Taney(Edina, Minn./Edina HS) (No. 11), Mahtani (No. 18) and freshman Denise Muresan(Lincolnshire, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson HS) (No. 25) earned regional singles rankings, while Sugiyama and Mahtani (No. 3) made an appearance in the regional doubles poll.
U-M also made an appearance in the final standings of the inaugural ITA Attendance Race. Michigan ranked second nationally in average attendance (188) and third in total attendance (1,877).
The Wolverines will return eight letterwinners and welcome freshman Michelle Sulahian(Valley Glen, Calif./Campbell Hall HS) to the roster for the 2008-09 season.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
