Sept. 22, 2003
THIS WEEK: The Iowa women’s tennis team will travel to Greenville, SC for the Furman Invitational Friday through Sunday. Competition will take place at the Mickel Tennis Center.
THE COMPETITION: The Hawkeyes will compete against Clemson, Furman, Middle Tennessee State, North Carolina, Penn State, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin. In the spring 2003 final rankings by ITA, North Carolina ranked ninth, Vanderbilt 13th, Clemson 19th, South Carolina 46th, and Wisconsin 62nd.
THE HAWKEYES: The Hawkeye roster includes five returnees and four newcomers.
Seniors Deni Alexandrova and Jennifer Hodgman will lead the team. Alexandrova finished last season with a 7-13 singles record, playing at the No. 3, 4 and 5 positions. Hodgman posted a 13-13 singles record at the No. 6 position. Juniors Gloria Okino and Jenny Schulte, along with sophomore Chelsea Glynn look to add depth to the team. Okino led the team with a 17-16 singles record at the No. 3 and 4 positions. Schulte saw limited action. Glynn recorded an 8-12 singles record playing at the No. 4 and 5 positions.
Newcomers are Hilde Jansma, Hillary Mintz, Megan Racette and Hilary Tyler. Jansma, a native of the Netherlands, has been ranked in the top 10 in Holland for her age group. Mintz was the state singles champion her senior year of high school and was ranked 139th nationally in singles. Racette held the Iowa singles title all four years of high school. She also won every singles match during her high school career. Tyler posted a 16-1 singles record her senior year of high school, finishing fourth at the state meet.
HEAD COACH WARDLAW: Paul Wardlaw is in his seventh season as head coach of the Iowa women’s tennis program. Wardlaw has compiled a record of 69-66 (.511) and a career record of 319-141 (.693). Under his direction, the Hawkeyes have made three NCAA tournament appearances.