Sept. 21, 2004
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This Week
The University of Iowa women’s tennis team will begin the fall season in Greenville, SC, at the Furman Fall Classic Friday through Sunday. Competition will take place at the Minor Herndon Mickel Tennis Center.
The Competition
The Hawkeyes will face players from Clemson, Furman, Middle Tennessee State, North Carolina, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin.
Vanderbilt finished last season ranked second, while Clemson finished fifth. Other ranked teams include South Carolina (33), Wisconsin (49) and Middle Tennessee State (64).
Last Season
The Hawkeyes finished 2004 with a 14-10 record and advanced to the NCAA Championship Tournament.
Iowa had a 6-5 Big Ten mark to finish sixth in the conference. The Hawkeyes advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
Meet The Hawkeyes
This year’s team is comprised of four sophomores and two freshmen.
Meg Racette returns as the top player for the Hawkeyes. Last season, shewas named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and named all-Big Ten. Racette finished the season with a 22-11 overall record.
Hillary Mintz had a successful freshman campaign, going 28-11. She was named all-Big Ten and set the Hawkeye record for most singles wins by a freshman.
Hilary Tyler returns for the Hawkeyes after playing at the No. 3 and 6 positions last spring. Tyler provided the Hawkeyes with extra depth throughout the season.
Anastasia Zhukova joined the Hawkeyes for the spring season last year. She went 12-10, including a 4-2 mark at the No. 3 position.
This season’s recruiting class is comprised of Morgan Tuttle and Milica Veselinovic. Tuttle is originally from Winnetka, Illinois. Veselinovic joins the Iowa squad from Sombor, Serbia.
The Lineup
The Furman Fall Classic has six flights of singles and three doubles flights. Here is the projected Hawkeye lineup:
Singles
Flight One: Meg Racette
Flight Two: Hillary Mintz
Flight Three: Anastasia Zhukova
Flight Four: Milica Veselinovic
Flight Five: Hilary Tyler
Flight Six: Morgan Tuttle
Doubles
Flight One: Racette/Mintz
Flight Two: Tuttle/Tyler
Flight Three: Zhukova/Veselinovic
Quoting Assistant Coach Neykova
“The Furman Fall Classic is a great tournament to start the season. I expect the sophomores to continue building on the success they had last year. I hope the two freshmen, Milica and Morgan, will have a great experience at their first collegiate tournament, compete well, and show their potential.”