The Emory University women’s tennis team brought home the
program’s seventh top-two national finish since 1996,
finishing second at the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament
in 2010.
Entering the NCAA Tournament as the fourth-seeded squad, the Eagles
cruised through the first three rounds at the Woodruff Physical
Education Center, receiving a first-round bye, followed by perfect
5-0 wins over Methodist University and sixth-seeded Washington and
Lee University. At the National Championship site in
Fredericksburg, VA, Emory defeated fifth-seeded Denison 5-2 in the
quarterfinals, and edged top-seeded Amherst College 5-4 to advance
to the finals for the first time since 2006. However, the
Eagles fell to second-seeded Williams College in the championship
match, 5-0, to end their 2010 campaign.
At the individual Division III Championships, Emory’s
second-seeded doubles pairing of Zahra Dawson and
Lorne McManigle finished as the national
runners-up, dropping a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 decision to the University of
Chicago’s top pairing in the championship match. Dawson
and McManigle also competed in the singles bracket, with both
advancing to the round of 16 before suffering tournament ending
losses. Dawson finished the season as the ninth-ranked player
in Division III, while McManigle ended the year ranked
14th, earning both spring All-America honors. The
pairing also earned all-America recognition for the doubles
performance, finishing the campaign ranked second among all
Division III pairings.
Earlier in the season, the Eagles’ streak of 22-consecutive
University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships, dating back to
the inaugural year of conference competition in 1988, came to a
close as the Eagles finished second to the University of Chicago at
the annual tournament. After opening the tournament with
back-to-back shutout wins over New York University and the
University of Rochester, the Eagles dropped a 5-3 decision to the
Maroons in the championship match. Despite the loss, Emory
still placed seven players on the all-UAA team, including four on
the first team.
Emory finished its regular season with a team record of 22-6, which
matched the second-highest win total in the program’s
history. It was the seventh season of 20 or more wins in the
program’s history. Highlights from the regular season
included a win at the 2010 ITA Division III Women’s Indoor
Championships, and a dominant 18-4 record against Division III
opponents.
In the fall, the Eagles swept the Wilson/ Intercollegiate Tennis
Association (ITA) South Region Championships for the third
consecutive year, as McManigle won the singles title, and later
teamed with Dawson to take home the doubles championships as
well. McManigle went on to finish seventh at the ITA National
Small College Singles Championships, and claimed sixth with Dawson
in the doubles bracket.
Emory senior Tshema Nash led the team in singles
victories during the season, going a team-best 24-3, and ended her
career with a 69-27 record, giving her the 13th-most
victories in school history. Her .889 winning percentage
during the year was the seventh-best single season mark in the
program’s history. In doubles play, McManigle and
Dawson led the Eagles in victories with a 23-13 record, while Nash
and senior Sabra Rogers combined for a 20-5 record
as a pair, giving the duo a team-high .800 winning percentage.
The Eagles earned the following honors during the 2010 season:
All-America (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) |
|||
Zahra Dawson |
Ft. Washington, MD (Maret) |
Singles (Fall & Spring), Doubles (Fall & Spring) |
|
Lorne McManigle |
Rockville, MD (Stone Ridge) |
Singles (Fall & Spring), Doubles (Fall & Spring) |
|
|
|||
Atlantic South Region Assistant Coach of the Year (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) |
|||
Meredith Vincent |
|||
|
|||
All-University Athletic Association |
|||
Tshema Nash |
San Marino, CA (Polytechnic) |
Second Doubles |
First Team |
Lindsay Reidenbach |
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL (The Bolles School) |
Fifth Singles |
First Team |
Sabra Rogers |
Charleston, SC (Bishop England) |
Second Doubles |
First Team |
Sara Vrabec |
Menasha, WI (St. Mary Central) |
Sixth Singles |
First Team |
Zahra Dawson |
Ft. Washington, MD (Maret) |
First Singles, First Doubles |
Second Team |
Jordan Wylie |
Roswell, GA (Centennial) |
Third Singles, Third Doubles |
Second Team |
Lorne McManigle |
Rockville, MD (Stone Ridge) |
First Doubles |
Second Team |
Sara Vrabec |
Menasha, WI (St. Mary Central) |
Third Doubles |
Second Team |
|
|||
Wilson/ ITA Fall South Region Champions |
|||
Lorne McManigle |
Rockville, MD (Stone Ridge) |
Singles & Doubles |
|
Zahra Dawson |
Ft. Washington, MD (Maret) |
Doubles |