FLUSHING, N.Y. - The William and Mary women's tennis duo of juniors Maria Belaya and Jeltje Loomans are the No. 3 seed in USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Doubles Championship, which is slated to begin on Thursday, Nov. 8. The only championship to showcase elite players from every level of collegiate sports, the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships serves as the culmination of the fall season. Hosted by Columbia University, this prestigious event features a 32-player singles draw and a 20-team doubles draw for men and women.

Belaya and Loomans will meet the Columbia team of Bianca Sanon and Tiana Takenaga in the second round at 9 a.m. on Thursday. The victor will earn a spot in the quarterfinals on Friday. The semifinals are slated for Saturday, Nov. 10, with the championship coming on Sunday, Nov. 11.

Gaining automatic entry into the tournament are champions from the USTA/ITA Division I Regional Championships held across the country in October, winners of the USTA/ITA National Small College Super Bowl, and the consolation champions, doubles finalists and singles quarterfinalists from the ITA Men's and ITA/Riviera Women's All-American Championships. Belaya and Loomans won the ITA Atlantic Region Doubles Championship on Oct. 23 to earn a spot in the national championship event.

The Green and Gold pair is a perfect 8-0 on the fall season. In total, the Tribe pair is 3-0 against the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championship field, including a victory over the No. 4-seeded Illinois team of Melissa Kopinski and Rachael White. Belaya and Loomans also earned wins over the Virginia teams of Stephanie Nauta-Li Xi and Maci Epstein-Erin Vierra in the regional championship. Dating back to last season, the Tribe pair has won 21 of their last 22 matches.

Ken Thomas of RadioTennis.com will be on site throughout the week starting Thursday, providing a live broadcast beginning at 10:15 a.m. each day. For complete coverage of the 2012 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships, including access to draws, live scores and more, please visit the official ITA event page. Follow the ITA on Twitter, @ITAtennis, for updates and news from Flushing. Use the hashtag #NationalIndoors for all tweets in regards to the event, or search the term "NationalIndoors" to find others who are tweeting from the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships, Nov. 8-11.