Oct. 6, 2011
Box Score
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. - Junior Rachael White and senior Marisa Lambropoulos represented the Illini women's tennis team in the qualifying rounds of the ITA All-American Championships, Oct. 4-6, capturing a big doubles win in the consolation draw on Thursday.
"To be chosen to the All-American tournament is an honor," Illini assistant coach Georgia Rose said. "I'm always impressed with the competition out there. I think every single player chosen for the tournament is very good, so I expected tough matches the entire time. In doubles, I think the Georgia team is a tough team. They really exposed our weaknesses, which is a good thing this early in the year. We can work and perfect those things until May. We learned a lot, and I think we played great today. It was great to end with a win, but it's a wake-up call that we need to keep improving, so I think it's exciting."
After a rocky start on day one of doubles play, Lambropoulos and White, No. 56 in the preseason rankings, rebounded on the final day of qualifying to take an 8-4 victory over Brown duo Jessica Harrow and Misia Krasowski in the consolation bracket.
In singles action, No. 67 White took on two nationally ranked opponents, but the Deerfield, Ill., native came up short in both matches, losing to No. 44 Christina Ngo of Georgia Tech and No. 65 Sonja Molnar of Iowa.
"It's a great learning experience," Rose said. "Rachael played it her freshman year, and it was good for her to be chosen again this year. She came up against two tough opponents, but that's the level that we see Rachael playing. She really started to play well her second match, and I was really pleased with the progress she made between her first and second matches. I think if she continues to work on the things that we talked about, she will continue to improve."
The Illini will return to action at the ITA Midwest Regionals, Oct. 20-25 in Columbus, Ohio.
ITA All-American Qualifying - Illini Results
Doubles
#20 Kate Fuller/Lauren Herring (Georgia) def. #56 Marisa Lambropoulos/Rachael White (Illinois), 8-1
#56 Marisa Lambropoulos/Rachael White def. Jessica Harrow/Misia Krasowski (Brown), 8-4
Singles
#44 Christina Ngo (Georgia Tech) def. #67 Rachael White (Illinois) 6-4, 6-2
#65 Sonja Molnar (Iowa) def. #67 Rachael White (Illinois), 6-3, 7-5
