Aug. 21, 2002
The Fighting Illini women's tennis team has been working diligently, on and off the court, in-season and out-of-season. And it shows.
The Illinois squad has earned distinction as an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic team for the fourth time in the four years that Sujay Lama has served as head coach. To receive this designation, a team must put together an aggregate grade point average of 3.2 or above on a 4.0 scale. The UI women last spring put together an excellent 3.608 GPA as a group. In addition, upcoming senior Michelle Webb has been named an ITA Scholar-Athlete. To earn that status, a player must be a junior or senior, be a varsity letterwinner, and have grade point average of 3.50 or better.
"We are very proud of these academic accomplishments," said Lama. "It shows that the women on our team are not one-dimensional; they have their priorities straight."
While several of the players took time off from their studies this summer, they were quite productive on the tennis court. A number of them competed on the ITA Summer Collegiate Circuit, and in addition, junior-to-be Jennifer McGaffigan played as an amateur in a four professional events.
The Davenport, Iowa product went 12-5 in WTA events, while making the main draw in three of the four events she entered. She picked up a victory over Harvard's Courtney Bergman, who had been ranked in the ITA Top 20 last season. McGaffigan registered her biggest win in the tournament at Hilton Head Island, S.C. when she beat Holly Parkinson, who had formerly been ranked as high as No. 77 in the world. She also reached the doubles semifinals at the Baltimore event. Her summer success earned McGaffigan 4.5 WTA points and a No. 973 world ranking.
McGaffigan also found time to team up with her sister, Katie, a sophomore at Wisconsin, to win the doubles title at the ITA Summer Nationals, with an 8-2 dismantling of top-seeded Karie Schlukebir and Linda Tran of Indiana. The title is Jennifer McGaffigan's first summer doubles title, but second overall, after taking home last year's singles crown.
McGaffigan wasn't the only Illini player to compete at that event in Bloomington, Ind. Webb, Eva Choe and Leila Cehajic each advanced to the Round of 32 in singles, while senior Eldina Fazlic reached the Round of 16. McGaffigan, the defending champion and top seed, was upset in the semifinals by eventual champion Sadhaf Pervez of Ohio State.
The Illini players also fared well in July on the summer circuit stops leading up to the national tournament. Six UI competitors entered the singles draw at the University of Michigan event during the first week of the month. Junior Tiffany Eklov had the team's best singles performance as she advanced to the quarterfinals. In doubles, the Illini duo of Fazlic and Cehajic advanced to the semifinals before dropping a match.
At Ohio State July 13-17, Cehajic and Cynthya Goulet competed in singles where Goulet reached the round of 16 and Cehajic advanced to the round of 32. In doubles competition, the pair lost its first match before making a run thorough the consolation bracket that saw them advance to the semifinals.
In the tournament at Notre Dame July 27-30, Fazlic and Cehajic teamed up to capture the tournament doubles crown, which was a first for both players. The Illini also had a strong showing in singles with Fazlic reaching the semifinals, Eklov advancing to the quarterfinals and junior Eva Choe and senior Michelle Webb making it to the round of 16.
"I have been very pleased with the work ethic of our players this summer," Lama said. "They have been working out hard on their own, and they've also taken the initiative to compete in a number of tournaments with strong fields. This can only help them as we resume teaching and competition after school starts."
The Illni will be returning every player from last year's squad, which finished fourth in the Big Ten. Illinois' fall schedule will begin Sept. 20-22 at the William and Mary Invitational in Virginia.
