University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Hosts Gopher Invitational
9/18/2014 12:00:00 AM | Tennis
Singles Brackets | Friday Doubles Brackets | Tournament Rosters
MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota women's tennis team will get its 2014-15 season underway this weekend when it plays host to the 2014 Gopher Invitational at the Baseline Tennis Center, beginning Friday. Thirteen teams from eight different conferences will be represented at the three-day event. Play each day is slated to begin at 9 a.m.
The schools making the trip to Minneapolis this weekend include: Northern Iowa, Drake, Northern Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Milwaukee, South Dakota, South Dakota State, North Dakota, Iowa State, Eastern Michigan, and Kentucky.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
Singles play at the Gopher Invitational will include five 16-player draws and one eight-player draw that will play out over the course of the weekend. The first round will be played Friday, two rounds will take place Saturday, and the final round will be played Sunday.
There will be new doubles draws for each day of the tournament. Friday, there will be five eight-team draws and one four-team draw that will be played to completion. Saturday will feature 12 new four-player draws that will be played out prior to singles play. There will be 12 more four-player draws Sunday that will go on before the final round of singles.
Each day of the tournament is scheduled to start with doubles at 9 a.m. and singles to follow. Brackets and tournament schedule are subject to change.
2013-14 IN REVIEW
The Gophers showed great improvement in their second season under current head coach Chuck Merzbacher. After going 10-15 with a 3-8 mark in Big Ten play, Minnesota upped its record to 17-9 and 6-5 in the conference. The team's overall win total of 17 and its six league wins were its highest since 2003.
Minnesota improved in both singles and doubles in 2013-14. Following a 2012-13 campaign that saw the team combine for a 117-140 (.455 winning percentage) singles record, the Gophers went 165-118 (.583) last season. In doubles, the Maroon and Gold registered a 57-53 (.518) ledger two seasons ago and upped that mark to 66-54 (.550) last year. In dual match play, the Gophers started 16-0 in doubles matches en route to starting 4-0 as a team for the first time since 1995.
RETURNING TALENT
Minnesota lost three seniors--Natallia Pintusava, Yuliana Umanets, and Pauline Gilbert--to graduation after last season, but returns a solid core to this year's team. The seven returning players combined for 132 (18.9 wins per returnee) wins over the course of 2013-14, including 78 wins in dual match play.
Leading the charge will be 20-plus-match winners Julia Couter, Aria Lambert, Jessika Mozia, and Tereza Brichacova. Courter's 25 wins last season were 15th all-time on the school's single-season wins list, while Brichacova earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors after a solid year that saw her play at No. 1 singles in 22 of the team's 26 spring matches.
NEW TO THE MIX
The Maroon and Gold welcomed three new student-athletes over the offseason. Freshmen Caroline Ryba and Mehvish Safdar are set to making their collegiate debuts Friday, while Connecticut transfer Alexandra Bergman will come in as a junior for the Gophers. Both Ryba and Bergman are originally from Illinois, while Safdar is an Ohio native.
LAST YEAR AT THE GOPHER INVITATIONAL
The 2013 Gopher Invitational saw the Minnesota women's tennis team get off to a solid start. Minnesota went a perfect 10-0 in first-round matches. Tereza Brichacova and Jessika Mozia each went on to win singles flight titles, while Aria Lambert (fell to Mozia) and Maja Vujic placed second. Paula Rincon Otero placed fourth in her flight.
In doubles, Brichacova and Rincon Otero dropped their opening match, but won their three remaining matches on the weekend. Natallia Pintusava and Julia Courter, who went on to finish the season with a 23-8 record including a 19-4 dual match record, placed third in the top flight. Mozia and Kendall Heitzner also won their third-place match.
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Players Mentioned
