June 14, 2011

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University men's and women's tennis teams were both ranked No. 6 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) final 2011 regional listings. In the recent release, both of the Bulldogs' squads came in as the sixth-ranked team in the talent-laden Southern Region of Division I tennis.

Taylor Morgan, Samford's four-time all-conference women's tennis player, finished her illustrious collegiate career as the 17th-ranked player in the Southern Region's singles listings. The Bulldogs' senior from Jacksonville, Fla., also teamed with junior Lindsey Mallory to form the region's eighth-ranked doubles tandem.

Morgan, who was a First-Team All-SoCon performer in both singles and doubles play earlier this year, finished the 2011 campaign with a 14-8 record at the highly competitive No. 1 singles spot. As the Bulldogs' No. 1 doubles tandem, Morgan and Mallory concluded the season with a 15-8 doubles record.

The Samford women's tennis team earned its No. 6 ranking in the Southern Regional by compiling a stellar 18-5 overall record. The Bulldogs finished league play with a 7-3 record and advanced to the semifinal round of the 2011 SoCon Tournament.

The Samford men's tennis team advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in four years and earned its No. 6 regional ranking by tallying a 19-7 overall record. The Bulldogs concluded the regular season with a five-match winning streak and proved to be triumphant in the championship contest of the SoCon Tournament.

With its recent success, the future looks even brighter for the Samford men's tennis team. In 2012, the Bulldogs return four of their six singles starters, including Carson Kadi and Zac Dunkle at the all-important No. 1 and No. 2 positions, respectively. Samford will also boast an additional eight returning letterwinners to its talented roster in 2012.

Men's Southern Rankings
Administered by the ITA

NCAA Division I Tennis

Rank School
1. Auburn
2. Mississippi State
3. Ole Miss
4. LSU
5. Alabama
6. Samford
7. UAB
8. South Alabama
9. Tulane
10. Nicholls State

Women's Southern Rankings
Administered by the ITA

NCAA Division I Tennis

Rank School
1. Alabama
2. Ole Miss
3. LSU
4. Auburn
5. Tulane
6. Samford
7. Mississippi State
Louisiana-Lafayette
Louisiana-Monroe
10. Northwestern State

Rank Player, School
1. Kristi Boxx, Ole Miss
2. Mary Anne Macfarlane, Alabama
3. Alexa Guarachi, Alabama
4. Whitney Wolf, LSU
5. Connor Vogel, Ole Miss
6. Caroline Rohde-Moe, Ole Miss
7. Courtney McLane, Alabama
8. Mariam Kurdadze, Tulane
9. Olivia Howlett, LSU
10. Laura Van de Stroet, Ole Miss
11. Paulina Schippers, Auburn
12. Alexandra Perper, Mississippi State
13. Alex Clay, Alabama
14. Kaitlin Burns, LSU
15. Keri Frankenberger, LSU
16. Olivia Bennett, Auburn
17. Taylor Morgan, Samford
18. Emma Levy, Tulane
19. Julie Mazinova, ULL
20. Karoline Grymel, Troy

Rank Team, School
1. Alexa Guarachi/Courtney McLane, Alabama
2. Kristi Boxx/Abby Guthrie, Ole Miss
3. Mariam Kurdadze/Emma Levy, Tulane
4. Alex Clay/Taylor Lindsey, Alabama
5. Kaitlin Burns/Whitney Wolf, LSU
6. Jacqueline Kasler/Plamena Kurteva, Auburn
7. Gabby Rangel/Connor Van de Stroet, Ole Miss
8. Taylor Morgan/Lindsey Mallory, Samford
9. Mary Anne MacFarlane/Antonia Foehse, Alabama
10. Caroline Thornton/Paulina Schippers, Auburn