UM Set to Face UCLA at the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships
Feb. 2, 2005
CORAL GABLES, Fla.– The 12th ranked University of Miami (1-0) women’s tennis team will make their fifth appearance in the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships when they face 3rd seeded UCLA (3-0) in the first round Thursday, February 3rd at 3:00 p.m. in the University of Wisconsin’s A.C. Nielsen Tennis Stadium.
Collegiate Tennis’ premiere indoor team tournament will run from February 3-6 with the championship scheduled for Sunday, February 6th. The indoor tournament fields 16 of the nation’s top teams and will serve as a preview of the teams to beat in May. Joining Miami are teams from (3) Clemson, (8) Duke, (13) Georgia, (34) Harvard, (14) Kentucky, (24) New Mexico, (15) North Carolina, (5) Northwestern, (1) Stanford, (16) Texas A&M, (10) Tulane, (4) UCLA, (6) Vanderbilt, (11) Washington and (48) Wisconsin.
On hand will be all four semifinalists from last May’s NCAA Championships: champ Stanford, finalist UCLA and semifinalists Clemson and Vanderbilt. Stanford and Wisconsin are the only schools to have played in all 17 previous USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships.
The Hurricanes have posted a 6-6 record in five appearances at the national indoor tournament. Miami had their best showing in 1988 when they reached the semifinals.
USTA/ITA National Indoor Draws:
Thursday’s opening round schedule is as follows (seeding in parenthesis):
(1) Stanford vs. Harvard, 9 a.m.
(8) Washington vs. New Mexico, 9 a.m.
(4) Northwestern vs. Georgia, 9 a.m.
(5) Vanderbilt vs. Wisconsin, 9 a.m.
(6) Duke vs. Texas A&M, 3 p.m.
(3) UCLA vs. Miami (Fla.), 3 p.m.
(7) Tulane vs. North Carolina, 3 p.m.
(2) Clemson vs. Kentucky, 3 p.m.
Scouting the Bruins:
UCLA has made 15 appearances in the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships having reached the finals twice during that span. The Bruins are seeded third in the tournament and boast a No. 4 ranking in the most recent ITA poll.
UCLA heads to the tournament with a 3-0 season record after defeating Loyola Marymount, UC Irvine and most recently Pepperdine. The Bruins roster boasts four ranked players, headlined by ninth ranked freshman Riza Zalameda and 20th ranked sophomore Daniela Bercek, last season’s NCAA doubles champion. Together the tandem is ranked fifth in the country.
The Hurricanes are 2-7 in the all-time series against the Bruins. Both teams met twice during the 2004 season, including a quarterfinal match-up at the NCAA Team Tournament, with the Hurricanes falling 4-3 on both occasions.
