April 17, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Columbia, Mo. - The University of Missouri women's tennis team (10-11/2-7 Big 12) closes out the regular season when it travels to Oklahoma to face the 61st-ranked Oklahoma State Cowgirls (10-8/4-5 Big 12) Friday at noon and the un-ranked Sooners (10-10, 3-6) at 11 a.m. Saturday. The Tigers, who currently sit in 11th place in the Big 12 standings, will try to improve their seeding for next week's Big 12 Championships with their two remaining matches.
Quick Look Back...Tigers Pick Up Second League Win
The Tigers earned their second Big 12 victory last Saturday (April 12) when they swept Iowa State, 7-0. Mizzou won all six singles matches and all three doubles contests against the Cyclones, claiming their first conference sweep since the 2004 squad swept Iowa State in Ames. Saturday's win came after Friday's 5-2 loss to then-No. 67 Nebraska in Lincoln.
Quick Look Ahead...Big 12 Championships on the Horizon
Texas A&M's George P. Mitchell Tennis Center will host the Big 12 Championships April 24-27 for the third time in conference history. If the season ended today, the Tigers would be the 11th seed, two spots below last year's 9th place finish. The top four teams in the tournament receive first-round byes.
Tigers Face ninth top-75 team in Oklahoma State
When Mizzou hits the court against the 61st-ranked Cowgirls, they will be playing their ninth ranked team this season. The Tigers are 1-7 in their eight matches against ranked teams, with their only win coming against then-No. 55 Kansas (March 16). The Cowgirls are coming off a 4-3 win over Oklahoma Wednesday (April 16). OSU's top singles player, Iryna Tkachenko, is 9-7 in the No. 1 spot this spring, after losing to Oklahoma's Ana Constantinescu in straight sets. The Cowgirls have won 29 of the 33 previous matches between the schools.
Sooner Saturday
Oklahoma is 3-6 in the Big 12, with wins over Kansas State, Iowa State and Texas Tech. The Tigers have only beaten Oklahoma once in their previous 29 meetings. The Sooners play Colorado Friday (April 18) in Norman. No 1 singles player Ana Constantinescu leads OU with a 14-4 record at No. 1 this season.
Tiger Notes
Weber Playing Well at No. 1
Freshman Mallory Weber is 8-12 in dual matches this spring after splitting two matches at No. 1 last weekend. She will play at No. 1 singles again this weekend, against Tkachenko and Constantinescu. Weber earned all eight of her singles wins at No. 1, a total which more than doubles Mizzou's win total at No. 1 last season (three). She has earned the most No. 1 wins since the 2005 season, when Katka Sevcikova earned 14 victories at the top spot.
Giuggioli Tries to Keep it Going
Jessica Giuggioli, a junior transfer from the University of Kentucky, is 13-8 on the spring in singles play, which includes a 2-4 record at No. 1 and a 9-3 mark at No. 2. Last weekend, she also split two matches at No. 2 singles, losing at Nebraska and winning in Ames. She will be in the No. 2 spot again this week.
Modesto Wins 23rd
Tiger freshman Maureen Modesto won her 23rd match of her freshman season (including fall tournament play) last Saturday against Iowa State's Chrissy Derouin. She is now tied with Nancy Dickens for 14th on Mizzou's best single season record leaderboard. Modesto's 23 also marks the most wins by a Mizzou player since the 2004-05 season.
Doubles Success Story
Giuggioli and Ritchie have won five of their last six doubles matches, and the win was Ritchie's 23rd of the season, including fall tournament play. That mark ties her for 12th on Mizzou's single-season doubles wins list with Helen Wilson, who earned 23 wins in the 1979-80 season.
Ayala Wins Two More
Tiger junior transfer Sofia Ayala won two singles matches at No. 6 last weekend, to claim to earn her ninth victory of the spring. She has won four of her last five Big 12 matches in straight sets
Tigers Finish Seventh Season at GTC
The Green Tennis Center has served as the home of Mizzou tennis since the spring of 2002, when Mizzou opened its doors with a 5-4 home record. The Tigers have continued that home success throughout the six seasons at the GTC, going 53-24 in the dome at 2001 S. Providence Rd. Mizzou finished with an 8-3 home record, including a big win over then-No. 55 Kansas.
Coaching Staff: Two Blakes!
As Tiger Head Coach Blake Starkey enters his 11th season at the helm, he brings Assistant Coach Blake Edwards on board to lead Mizzou in 2008. Starkey, who went 106-120 in his first ten seasons, enters his second decade searching for more.
Tiger Hometowns: The Heartland and Beyond
Speaking of different backgrounds, Mizzou's 2008 players come from both far and near. Starkey has recruited four players from the USTA Missouri Valley Section (Dunham, Ritchie, Svetlic and Weber) while adding one from Indiana (Modesto). Also joining the Tigers in 2008; Ayala, a native of Quito, Ecuador, who played for Alabama, and Giuggioli, a Piombino, Italy, native, who played with Kentucky last season.