2004 Women's Tennis Outlook

01/11/04 1:44PM

- Last season the William and Mary women’s tennis team had one of its most successful campaigns in history, setting a school record for wins with 25 and ending the year ranked eighth in the nation. The Tribe also advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time overall and the eighth time in the last nine years, reaching the Sweet 16. Five singles players and three doubles teams earned All-Colonial Athletic Association honors, and W&M sent two players to the NCAA Individual Tournament, while also claiming the ITA East Region singles title and the CAA and ITA East Region Rookies of the Year.

Despite all that success, the 2004 season looks to be even stronger for first-year head coach Kevin Epley, as the Tribe returns six players from last season, including five starters at both singles and doubles, while also adding four very talented freshman recruits. With no seniors on the current roster, the entire group should be able to play together for two full seasons, making the College a formidable force in the near future.

The team’s leadership on the court will come from its four-person junior class, which combined for a record of 92-46 in singles and 60-32 in doubles, while totaling six All-CAA honors.

Leading the way at the top of the lineup is Candice Fuchs, a two-time first team all-league selection in singles and doubles. Playing No. 1 singles and doubles virtually the entire season, Fuchs ended the year ranked 26th in the nation in singles and 15th in doubles, as she made the NCAA Individual Tournament in both.

The team’s captain this season is Amy Wei, who entered the year ranked fourth in school history with a .757 (53-17) career singles winning percentage. A first team All-CAA pick in singles and doubles last year, Wei teamed up with sophomore Megan Muth in the fall to win the ITA East Region doubles title. She ended last season ranked 104th in the nation in singles, as she put together a 30-6 record, including a 21-3 singles record in dual matches.

Rounding out the junior class are Kate Boomershine and Lena Sherbakov. Boomershine had an immediate impact on the team last season after transferring from Illinois, teaming up with Fuchs in doubles to end the year in the NCAA Tournament and ranked 15th in the nation. A first team All-CAA selection in doubles and second team in singles, she ended the year by winning eight of her last 11 singles matches.

Sherbakov also was a valuable contributor, posting a 20-6 singles record in the spring and ending the year by winning 13 of her last 15 contests, including three of four in the postseason.

Sophomore Megan Muth piled on the honors early in her career, as she was named the ITA East Region and CAA Rookie of the Year, while earning first team all-conference honors in singles and doubles. The region’s singles champion in 2002 and doubles champion (with Wei) in 2003, Muth had one of the best rookie seasons in school history, with 32 singles wins and 20 doubles victories.

Also returning for the Tribe this season is sophomore Lingda Yang, who was a second team All-CAA pick in doubles with 2003 graduate Kari Olsen. Yang’s 25 doubles wins on the year is tied for the seventh-best rookie mark in W&M history, and she also put together an impressive 15-4 singles mark on the year, winning all six of her matches while dropping just two games in the spring.

Four talented freshman will also be in the mix for the Tribe this season and all will be immediately pushing for time in the starting lineup this spring. Alex de Guzman comes to the Tribe from Holmdel, New Jersey, where she was ranked as high as 180th in the nation in juniors. From Atlanta, Georgia, Kristen Dunbar was a four-time state champion and was ranked as high as 120th in juniors. The rookie with the most high-level experience is Megan Moulton-Levy, from Monroe, Michigan. Ranked as high as 58th in singles and 34th in doubles in the ITF World Junior Rankings, she competed at the Junior U.S. Open, Junior French Open and Junior Wimbledon in 2003 and won three of her four matches while playing for Jamaica in the 2003 Fed Cup. Emily Mowery, from Bradenton, Florida, rounds out the freshman class. Mowery was ranked as high as 358th in singles and 604th in doubles in the world junior rankings, and was 52nd in the U.S. junior rankings.

As always, the Tribe will face one of the toughest schedules in the nation, as W&M is slated to face at least 16 teams that either made the 2003 NCAA Tournament or finished ranked at the end of last season, including seven that ended the year ranked in the top-25. Matchups with perennial national powers Texas, Northwestern, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Miami, Florida, South Alabama, Notre Dame and Virginia Commonwealth are scattered throughout the spring schedule. In addition, the Tribe has once again been invited to compete at the prestigious ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Madison, Wisconsin, featuring 16 of the best women’s tennis teams in the nation.