Bridget Merrick (2025) - Richmond Athletics Hall of Fame

Bridget Merrick

Induction:
2025
Class:
1998

From conference and university honors to national rankings, Bridget Merrick helped define Richmond women’s tennis during one of the program’s most successful eras, playing number two singles and first doubles for the Spiders.

Her singles career record included 51 wins, 21 of which came during a breakout sophomore season. She culminated her career by being named first team All-CAA Doubles as a senior, and sharing Richmond’s Senior Female Athlete of the Year honors with doubles partner Lesia Bilak as the duo reached unprecedented heights.

Playing for legendary Hall of Fame coach Mark Wesselink, the Merrick and Bilak doubles team was ranked as high as ninth nationally. During their 1997-98 senior year, they compiled a 17-2 record in the fall, highlighted by winning the Rolex East Regional Championship with a stunning victory over the nation’s 13^th ranked doubles team from William & Mary, beating them in straight sets on their home court. The triumph qualified them as one of just 16 teams for the Rolex National Indoor Tennis Championship at SMU in Dallas, TX, where they reached the quarterfinals.

In the spring they were 15-2 for the Spiders, including a 13-match winning streak. Merrick and Bilak were named All-CAA First Team in doubles and as one of the top 32 pairs in the country, they qualified for the NCAA Doubles Championship. The duo won 66 doubles matches for the Spiders in their four seasons.