NO. 29 STATE WOMEN?S TENNIS BACK IN ACTION AT COURTSIDE CLASSIC
February 05, 2016 | Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – After enjoying an off weekend, the 29th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team (3-1) will make the trip to Minneapolis, Minnesota, this weekend for the Courtside Classic. The event, hosted by the University of Minnesota, will be played at the Baseline Tennis Center on the UM campus. Joining the Bulldogs will be three other ranked teams including 41st-ranked DePaul, No. 60 host Minnesota and No. 63 New Mexico.
"We are excited about getting back into action this weekend," head coach Daryl Greenan said. "There will be three other ranked teams here as well which will just help us to improve. The girls had a good week of practice and are ready to get out there tomorrow."
On Saturday, February 6, MSU will face New Mexico at 10 a.m. CT. To conclude the event, the Bulldogs will be squaring off against either DePaul or the host Golden Gophers on Sunday, February 7, also at 10 a.m.
Mississippi State looks to improve on its showing during the ITA Kick-Off Weekend in Durham, N.C., last month where it defeated No. 36 Florida State 4-0 and dropped a tough 4-1 decision to 16th-ranked Duke.
Senior Georgiana Patrasc (4-0) is off to a hot start in 2016 after recording MSU's lone point against the Blue Devils. State's 13th-ranked Jasmine Lee is looking to improve on her impressive 13-5 record this year that has seen her achieve the highest singles ranking in MSU history. Anastasia Rentouli, Madison Harrison, Louise Ronaldson, Kristina Vozniak, Jennifer Brown and Caroline Kelly could all also factor into MSU's results this weekend. Rentouli is ranked 36th nationally and is 14-2 overall. Brown and Vozniak comprise State's lone ranked doubles team, coming in at No. 53 nationally. They are 6-2 this season as a duo.
The New Mexico Lobos (3-0) will bring with them a ranked singles player in Andrea Leblanc, who is 85th nationally. The junior from Mexico City, Mexico, finished her fall season tied for the team lead with a 16-3 record.
DePaul (1-2) is coming off of a thrilling 4-3 victory over No. 44 Houston on Sunday, January 31. The win was the first of the season for the Blue Demons and its first victory over a ranked foe on the year. Scoring the clinching point for DePaul was freshman Marina Cozac. DePaul boasts a top-40 doubles pair in 37th-ranked Yuliya Shupenia and Rebeca Mitrea.
Minnesota (5-1) is looking to continue its success thus far in the 2016 campaign, with its only loss coming at the hands of No. 34 Wichita State during the ITA Kick-Off Weekend in College Station, Texas.
For more information on Mississippi State women's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateWT.
