Bektas Wins Big Ten Athlete of the Week
10/26/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Oct. 26, 2011
PARK RIDGE, Ill. -- Freshman Emina Bektas (Indianapolis, Ind./New Braunfels HS) of the University of Michigan women's tennis team was named Big Ten Conference Athlete of the Week on Wednesday (Oct. 26), just a day after capturing the singles title at the ITA Midwest Regional Championships. The weekly honor is the second for the Wolverines this season and the first for Betkas in her collegiate career.
Bektas, ranked No. 9 in the ITA preseason freshman/newcomer poll, became the first player in Michigan program history to capture the ITA Midwest Regional singles title on Tuesday (Oct. 25), capping a perfect 5-0 tournament appearance with a 6-4, 6-2 decision against Northwestern's No. 58-ranked Brittany Wowchuk in the championship final. As the regional singles champion, Bektas earns automatic selection to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships.
The Wolverine rookie defeated another pair of ranked opponents to advance to the championship match, rallying past Northwestern's No. 53 Kate Turvy, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (0), in the semifinals after knocking off Notre Dame's No. 38-ranked Shannon Matthews, 6-3, 6-4, in the quarterfinals. Bektas improved to 8-2, boasting four wins against nationally ranked opposition.
Bektas also teamed with sophomore Brooke Bolender (Delray Beach, Fla./Kaplan HS) to advance to the doubles semifinal round, where they narrowly lost to Northwestern's No. 3-ranked tandem Linda Abu Mushrefova and Nida Hamilton, 9-7, to bow out with a 3-1 record.
Bektas will appear in the prestigious USTA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships, which is scheduled for Nov. 3-6 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. The rest of the Wolverines will wrap up fall tournament action at the ASU Thunderbird, Nov. 4-6, at Arizona State's Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe, Ariz.
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
