The Red and Black

Issue date: 4/24/09 Section: Sports

Yvette Hyndman

A year ago, the Georgia women's tennis team were underdogs, despite heading into the 2008 SEC Tournament as the No. 2 seed.

After all, 2008 regular season champion Florida strolled into the postseason unscathed and unmatched in conference play.

But the Bulldogs, comprised of a promising sophomore class, willed their way through three tough victories, including two thrillers, a 4-3 decision over Arkansas in the semifinals and a 4-3 nail-biter over the arch-rival Gators in the tournament final - with Naoko Ueshima clinching both matches for the Bulldogs.

This season, don't expect anyone to take this third-ranked and top-seeded Georgia team lightly.

Four players from last year's tournament-winning team, Ueshima, Yvette Hyndman, Monika Dancevic and Cameron Ellis, played integral roles in bringing home the fifth conference tournament title.

Another year of experience for this quartet, coupled with the addition of blue-chippers Chelsey Gullickson and Nadja Gilchrist, make the Bulldogs (20-2, 10-1 SEC) the team to beat in the 2009 SEC Tournament in Fayetteville, Ark.

"I think just our whole team is different," Hyndman said. "We've got two freshmen coming in and [the SEC Tournament's] new to them. I think everyone that was on the team last year, though, knows what to expect. We really feel like we can win SECs, and it's important for us to be positive heading into this weekend."

If they need positive reaffirmation, the Bulldogs don't have to look too far past their litany of accomplishments this season.

Gullickson and Gilchrist have tallied a team-best 31 wins apiece in singles play in their first year of eligibility while the back end of the lineup, the 5- and 6-singles positions, has proven to be nothing less than automatic - posting a 32-3 record in dual matches.

The team advanced to the finals of the ITA National Indoors Tournament in February before bowing out to top-ranked Northwestern, and finished the SEC regular season schedule with only one blemish - a road loss to the Gators - en route to clinching its eighth conference title in program history.

"We're right where we want to be," head coach Jeff Wallace said. "You want to win that regular season and you want to be the No. 1 seed in the tournament. I guess that just means you've had a great year, and we've had a great year."

As one of three players on the roster who has played on both SEC Tournament winning teams, Ueshima doesn't care whether her team is favored to win or not.

"I think it doesn't matter what position you're in, you just have to fight in every single match and then the good things come," Ueshima said. "You just have to have a mindset that you're going to continue fighting no matter what position you're in. It's always nice to be on the top [of the SEC], and we just have to keep working hard to keep the spot."

After receiving a first round bye, the top-seeded Bulldogs begin their quest for a third straight SEC Tournament championship as they square off against No. 23 Alabama (15-7) at 9:30 a.m.

Alabama, seeded eighth, defeated rival and 9-seed Auburn 4-0 in Thursday's first round match.

Just three weeks ago, the Bulldogs spanked the Crimson Tide 6-1 in Tuscaloosa.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools