Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Heads to Georgia For NCAA Championships
5/16/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
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May 16, 2005
EVANSTON, Ill. - At 11 a.m. (CDT) this Thursday, May 19 in Athens, Ga., Northwestern's women's tennis team will attempt to do something they never have done in head coach Claire Pollard's seven-year tenure: notch a win in the NCAA Championship round of 16. Riding a 15-match win streak and hot off two 4-0 sweeps in the NCAA Regional, the Wildcats seem primed to do just that. Nevertheless, the 12th-seeded Clemson Tigers pose a high hurdle the Wildcats will need to clear in order to continue their postseason run.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Thursday, May 19
Round of 16 - Northwestern vs. Clemson @ 11 a.m. CT
Friday, May 20
Quarterfinals @ 10 a.m. CT
Saturday, May 21
Semifinals @ 10 a.m. CT
Sunday, May 22
Championship Match @ 12 p.m. CT
• Live scoring and daily results will be available at UGA's tournament website and the NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship page
The boatload of accolades the `Cats have earned this season speak for themselves: best record of any Pollard coached team (26-2), ranked a school-best No. 2 in the nation for four weeks, seventh-straight Big Ten Tournament Title, three All-Big Ten selections (Audra Cohen, Cristelle Grier and Alexis Prousis), Big Ten Coach, Player and Freshman of the Year, ITA Midwest Region Head Coach and Assistant Coach of the Year, Midwest Region Rookie of the Year and Player to Watch.
Down in Georgia though, all of those awards won't help the `Cats advance toward their ultimate goal of a national championship, and they know it.
"I think in the past we've been really happy to make the Sweet 16. That's where we've been seeded to make, and this year we're seeded to make the quarters, which we won't be satisfied with," Pollard said. "We're just at a different level this year."
Northwestern will need to overcome a strong Clemson team that is 20-8 overall and ran off a streak of nine-straight victories at one point this year. The Tigers swept both Furman and William & Mary in their regional to get to this point.
To advance past the round of 16, Pollard and the 'Cats will look to cook up the same recipe that has proved deliciously successful time and time again this year: Impeccable doubles play sprinkled with solid singles play.
Northwestern has won the doubles point an impressive 24 times this year, putting up a perfect 24-0 record in the process. The 'Cats have rallied to win two of the three matches in which they've dropped the doubles point.
In singles, Pollard's top-three players (Cohen, Grier and Prousis) have combined for a whopping 119 wins this year. Notably, sophomore Alexis Prousis (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) has won 19 singles matches in a row over a three-month period. That kind of play earned her the ITA's Midwest Region Player to Watch Award.
The bottom-half of NU's lineup has been solid too, as the No. 4, 5 and 6 positions have a combined 47-25 record.
Some notes on the `Cats as they head to the Sweet 16...
• Northwestern has made it to the Round of 16 11 times, finishing as high as fifth twice (1986, 87).
• This weekend marks Northwestern's fifth trip to the NCAA round of 16 in Claire Pollard's seven years as head coach.
• This is NU's 16th NCAA Championship appearance (1982-83-84-85-86-87-96-97-98-99-2000-01-02-03-04-05), including its 10th-straight.
• Northwestern is currently riding a 15-match win streak -- one shy of the school record set back in 1986.
• The 'Cats are 24-0 this year when they win the doubles point.
