2004-05 Women's Tennis Outlook
USI looking for a return trip to NCAA II
Tournament
With a solid base of returning players and one of its best recruiting classes,
the 2004-05 University of Southern Indiana women’s tennis team begins its
quest for a GLVC championship and a spot in the NCAA Division II Tournament .
The Screaming Eagles concluded 2003-04 with a 10-7 overall record, placing third in the GLVC Tournament
during the fall half of the year. The Eagles moved up a spot in
the GLVC after going into the league’s post-season tournament as the fourth
seed with a 6-3 record.
Head Coach Keely Porter, USI’s all-time winningest
coach ( 121-68, .640), has made the Eagles into
one of the most consistent programs in the Great Lakes Region. During the last
four years in the GLVC, Porter’s Eagles are 30-6 in the league’s regular
season.
USI was led last year by a pair of All-GLVC performers in junior
Ashley Rees and sophomore
Audra Bartelt. Rees, USI’s
number one singles player a year ago, earned her second All-GLVC award with a 12-10
overall record, 6-3 in the GLVC. Bartelt, USI’s number two singles player in
2003-04, led
the team with a 14-4 overall record, 7-2 in the league.
Rees and Bartelt, who also combined to be USI's number one doubles team, going
10-11 overall, also played well in the ITA Great Lakes Regional. They reached
the third round individually and as a doubles team before bowing out.
USI saw its bottom third of the singles line-up surge during the end of last
year's fall campaign. Senior
Kalie Ackerman started the year slowly with a 2-5 record at number
five singles, but rebounded with a 7-2 record after moving to the number six
slot.
Junior Cassy Froderman
moved up into the number five slot and produced an 10-7 overall record
and went 7-2 in the GLVC.
The Eagles also a had strong doubles player in sophomore Casey
Clausman. She paired with two different doubles partners to
produce a 10-5 overall record, 7-2 in the GLVC.
With a solid team returning, Porter has added five freshmen -- Reilly Ackerman, Maggie Coffman, Emily Eubank, Adrienne Snoddy, and Sara Wilhoite -- for the 2004-05 season.
Ackerman, who will join her sister, Kalie, on the team, advanced to the
Illinois State Finals each season for Mt. Carmel High School in Mt. Carmel,
Illinois. She also was the conference and sectional champion in 2003 and 2004
and accumulated a record of 99-16 during her high school career.
Ackerman also helped MCHS to the North Egypt Conference title in 2002 and
2003.
Coffman, an All-District V and honorable mention All-State performer in 2004,
comes to the Eagles program after lettering all four seasons at Silver Creek
High School in Sellersburg, Indiana. The 2003 SCHS Most Valuable Player helped
lead the Dragons to sectional championships in 2001, 2003, and 2004.
Coffman also is ranked fourth in 18-doubles and 32nd in 18-singles in the
latest Central Indiana Tennis Association (CITA) rankings.
Wilhoite comes to USI from Connersville High School in Connersville, Indiana,
where she was a second team All-State selection in 2003 and was a three-time
All-Conference performer. She helped CHS to the Olympic Conference
Championship in 2003.
Wilhoite, a 2004 All-District IV and second team All-State player, begins her
collegiate career already with ties to the GLVC. Her sister, Grace, was the
2002 GLVC Player of the Year and a two-time All-GLVC performer at the
University of Indianapolis.
2003 Preview
