Lady Bulldogs Receive Third-Straight Bid to NCAA Championship
May 25, 2016 | Women's Tennis
"We're excited to have another opportunity to play in the NCAAs," head coach Tracy Lane said. "Ohio State is a very good team and we will need to play well to beat them and get another shot at Georgia."
The Lady Bulldogs' assignment to the Athens, Ga., regional was eerily similar to the draw in 1999. Two years ago, MSU was sent to UGa, where its first-round opponent was also the 33rd-ranked team in the country. The Lady Bulldogs advanced to the second round with a 6-0 win over No. 33 Washington State before falling to third-ranked host Georgia, 5-0.
The Buckeyes are led by two-time Big Ten Player of the Year Kristy Dascoli. Ranked 25th currently, Dascoli has posted a 28-12 record on the season in singles, while winning 27 doubles matches. At the No. 2 position, Monica Rincon has posted a 23-11 record, with 15 dual-match wins.
The Lady Bulldogs will be the No. 3 seed and Ohio State (17-10) is seeded second. The Lady Bulldogs were seeded in the 33-48 range, while Ohio State was placed in the 29-32 bracket.
Although the two teams have never met, both have common opponents this season. Both teams played Kentucky with Ohio State dropping a heart-wrenching 4-3 decision and the Lady Bulldogs defeating the Wildcats 4-3 in Starkville. Both teams dropped 5-2 decisions at Tennessee, and MSU gave the Lady Vols a better match in Starkville at the SEC Tournament, but still fell 4-0.
"We will concentrate on our final exams for a few days and get caught up on rest," Lane said. "And then we will continue to practice this weekend and next week to get ready for a good showing in Athens."
Eleven teams from the SEC were selected for the field of 64, as well as three of MSU?s non-conference opponents, making a total of 15 of State's 20 matches this season against NCAA-bound teams.
MSU IN THE 2001 NCAA WOMEN?S TENNIS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPFirst and Second RoundsMay 11-12, 2001 -- Athens, Ga.
Friday, May 11 No. 32 Mississippi State vs. No. 33 Ohio State -- 10 a.m. No. 4 Georgia vs. Coastal Carolina -- 2 p.m.
Saturday, May 12 Second-Round Match (to advance to round of 16 at Stone Mountain, Ga.) -- 4 p.m. (numbers preceding names are current national rankings)
