Clemson Women’s Tennis Team Ranked 16th In ITA Preseason Poll

Jan. 13, 2004

CLEMSON, SC – The Clemson women’s tennis team is ranked 16th according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association preseason poll released on Jan. 13. Three Tiger singles players and three doubles teams are ranked in the ITA’s individual singles and doubles polls.

The preseason team ranking of 16th is the highest for the Tigers since the 1994 season, when Clemson was 14th in the preseason poll. In 2003, the Tigers finished the spring season with a 19-6 overall record and a 7-1 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and were ranked 19th in the final ITA poll.

Julie Coin, from Amiens, France, is ranked ninth by the ITA in singles according to the Jan. 13 poll. Coin finished the fall season with a 6-3 record in singles and reached the semifinals of the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships before falling to third-ranked Raquel Kops-Jones of California.

Clemson’s Daniela Alvarez is ranked 40th in singles after posting a 7-3 singles record in the fall. The sophomore from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, recorded wins over three top-100 ranked opponents during the fall season.

Freshman Maria Brito, from Mexico City, Mexico, is 79th according to the ITA singles poll. Brito tallied a 9-3 record in singles matches during the fall season and advanced to the quarterfinals of the ITA Southeast Regional Singles Championships.

In doubles, the Tigers’ Brito and Coin are ranked 12th in the ITA poll after posting a fall record of 11-3. The pair won the ITA Southeast Regional Doubles Championship during the fall, becoming the first doubles team in Clemson history to claim that title.

Alvarez and senior Alix Lacelarie are 16th according to the ITA’s preseason doubles rankings after posting a 3-1 record in the fall including two wins over top-30 ranked teams. Lacelarie, a senior from Villeneuve-Les-Beziers, France, was ranked 33rd in the ITA’s fall singles poll but saw limited action during the fall season due to injury.

Clemson’s duo of junior Richele LeSaldo (St. Thomas, Barbados) and freshman Karen Rombouts (Huissen, Netherlands) ranks in a tie for 50th in the ITA doubles poll. The pair combined for a 6-1 record, with their only loss in the quarterfinals of the ITA Southeast Regional Championships.