University of Richmond Athletics
Women's Tennis Prepares for Atlantic 10 Championship
04/16/2003 | Women's Tennis
April 16, 2003
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - The University of Richmond women's tennis team enters the 2003 Atlantic 10 Championship with a 7-8 overall record and a 1-0 mark in conference action. The tournament will be held Thursday, April 17 through Saturday, April 19 at the Tennis Center in College Park, Md.
Richmond, picked to finish first in the league's preseason poll, played only one conference match during the regular season as the Spiders defeated George Washington University, 5-2 in early January. Richmond recorded four singles wins and swept the doubles matches.
The 2002 Atlantic 10 Champions return to tournament action after dropping their final two regular season contests to nationally-ranked opponents. Last season, their first year of conference competition, the top-ranked Spiders defeated third-seeded Xavier, 4-0, in the finals. With the win, Richmond earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, the program's third post-season showing. In opening round action, the Spiders lost 4-0 to #56 University of Pennsylvania.
Head Coach Mark Wesselink, the 2002 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, has led Richmond to three NCAA tournaments during his 14-year tenure. The Spiders made back-to-back appearances in 1997 and 1998 before returning to the tournament last season.
Senior Casey Cohen (Ponte Vedre Beach, Fla.) leads Richmond with 14 overall wins and a 6-9 record in spring dual matches. Senior Vanessa Bagnato (Manhasset, N.Y.) posts an 11-15 mark in singles after playing at all three top spots. Freshman Meghan Wolfgram (Granite Bay, Calif.) played eight contests at the #1 slot, registering three wins, and holds a spring record of 6-9.
In doubles action, Bagnato and Monika Peets (Tallinn, Estonia) have won a total of five spring matches with a 3-3 record at the top spot.
The tournament seeds will be determined the evening of April 16. They will be posted at www.atlantic10.org
Play starts on Thursday, April 17 at 8:00am, while the final match of the day will begin at 3:30pm. On Friday, April 18, play also begins at 8:00am and ends at 3:30pm. The fifth- and seventh-place matches of the Atlantic 10 Women's Tennis Championship will commence on Saturday, April 19 at 8:00am. The championship and third-place matches will follow at 11:00am.
Probable Line-ups
Singles
No. 1 - Meghan Wolfgram (6-9, 3-5 at #1)
No. 2 - Lindsay Cox (3-9, 2-3 at #2)
No. 3 - Vanessa Bagnato (6-8, 3-2 at #3)
No. 4 - Katie Karhohs (4-11, 4-7 at #4)
No. 5 - Casey Cohen (6-9, 4-7 at #5)
No. 6 - Courtney Klein (6-9, 6-5 at #6)
Doubles
No. 1 - Bagnato/Peets (5-3, 3-3 at #1)
No. 2 - Cohen/Karhohs (1-4, 0-1 at #2)
No. 3 - Wolfgram/Klein (1-1, 1-1 at #3)