Women’s Tennis Set for Spring Season

Sunday, January 27

University Park, PA

10:00am

George Washington University

Penn State University

1/25/2019 10:40:00 AM | Women's Tennis

Colonials take on Penn State on Sunday

By: Carson Shehab

SERVING FIRST: The George Washington women's tennis team will launch its 2019 spring season on the road on Sunday with a match against Penn State at 10 a.m. The Colonials last went head-to-head with the Nittany Lions in 2006, falling 7-0.

2018 REWIND: Head Coach Torrie Browning led the Colonials to a record-breaking spring season in 2018. After a tough slate of tournaments and training in the fall, it all proved to pay off, as GW went on to collect 14 victories and post its most wins in A-10 play in program history with a 6-1 mark in conference play. The Colonials also received eight A-10 postseason honors and earned their highest ranking in program history (No. 8) in the ITA Atlantic Region rankings.

FALL FLASHBACK: GW continued its momentum in the fall, putting in hard hours of training and facing tough opponents in tournament play in preparation for its 2019 dual-match slate. In the fall, Maria Siopacha represented the Buff and Blue at the Oracle ITA Masters and was later joined by Melis Bayraktaroglu at the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Tennis Championship. The Colonials wrapped up their fall season with a trip to Miami for the FIU Invitational.

BUFF AND BLUE DEBUT: The Colonials welcome a pair of newcomers in Katarina Marinkovikj and Xenia de Luna. Marinkovikj, a native of Macedonia, and de Luna, hailing from Madrid, will aim to make an immediate impact on the GW lineup this spring.

WHO'S BACK: The Colonials return five members of their successful 2017-18 squad, including A-10 Co-Performer of the Year Maria Siopacha. Siopacha earned a spot on in the regional rankings as the Atlantic's No. 19 solo player after a standout season were she garnered a trio of All-Conference honors and tallied a 19-9 record playing exclusively at the No. 1 position. Melis Bayraktaroglu and Sara Grubac will also make their return in 2018-19 after earning A-10 Second Team recognition last season.

WHO'S NOT: GW will be without recent graduates Marie-Louise Decamps and Kamilla Beisenova. Decamps garnered her first A-10 Second Team honor last season after recording a 19-13 solo mark, including a perfect 7-0 record against A-10 opponents. Beisenova capped her career with a 7-12 singles and 5-9 doubles record.

LOOK AHEAD: Following their match at Penn State, the Colonials will take on local foe Howard on home territory at the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center on Feb.1.