Jan. 24, 2000

The Missouri Tigers have a new freshman that has quietly made some noise in tennis circles. The Intercollegiate Tennis Association has announced that Kristina Olshanskya is ranked 20th in the Central Regional after a solid fall campaign. She finished the fall with a 6-5 singles record. This ranking follows a team ranking of 11th out of 32 teams in the Central Region.

Olshanskaya is the second freshman in the past two years to receive a pre-season regional ranking for Missouri. Last season it was the Tigers Biljana Pawlowa who was ranked 30th among individuals in the Central Region. She went on to take Big 12 Newcomer of the Year honors following the spring season.

"Besides being a sound player, Kristina is just a great kid. She's very upbeat, and is so easy to coach," head coach Blake Starkey said. "She'll definitely compete for one of our top spots, which says a lot for a freshman. We are very happy to have her."

Olshanskya and the Tigers begin their season this weekend playing in College Park, Md. against Maryland and Georgetown.