Tennis Selected Fourth in NAIA Preseason Poll
After being voted first in the Southern States Athletic Conference Coaches' Preseason Poll, the Brenau tennis team was also selected fourth in the 2017 NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Preseason Top 25 poll, the national office announced Tuesday.
The team, which finished fifth in the final 2016 Top 25 poll, returns a deep and experienced team, including SSAC All-Conference performers Maya Mammetgulyyeva, Rebecca Pijls and Patricia Recalde Pacua, as well as letter winners Kirsten Dickins and Paula Rives Palau. Newcomers Elizabeth Bielicki and Brianna Sterling will add depth to the talented squad.
"It will be an exciting season because we have an extremely competitive schedule against several ranked teams, as well as competition against top NCAA I, II, and III opponents and there are four or five teams in the SSAC with chances to win the conference this season," said head coach Andre Ferreira. "We're becoming a more competitive league in general and as I look at the NAIA national ranking, I see a lot of teams that are equally talented all the way down the ranking. This wasn't the case a few years ago."
"The gap is becoming smaller and it's exciting because it comes down to details and it's hard to predict results. We want to have the best possible preseason, prepare ourselves mentally for the 5-4 and 6-3 scores, and become the team that shows up when it matters most."
Other SSAC teams in the Top 25 poll include Middle Georgia State (8th), William Carey (Miss.) University (12th), the University of Mobile (16th) and Dalton State (Ga) (RV).
Reigning National Champions Georgia Gwinnett College were voted first in the poll.
The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences and the Association of Independent Institutions.
The Top 25 is determined by a points system based on how each voter ranks the best teams. A team receives 30 points for each first-place vote, 29 for second-place and so on through the list.
For the complete poll, click here.