Sept. 24, 2009

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The University of Memphis women's tennis team heads to Bloomington, Ind., this weekend for the Hoosier Classic from Sept. 25 through Sept. 27. The tournament will feature doubles and singles players from Indiana, Kansas State, LSU, Memphis and Mississippi State. Doubles play will beging Fri., Sept. 25 at 10:30 a.m. All matches will be played either outdoors at the IU Varsity Tennis Courts or indide the IU tennis center.

The Lady Tigers are coming off hosting the inaugural Memphis Collegiate Invitational last weekend. Memphis got several good showings from singles player and doubles tandems. Seniors Dara Toulch and Amanda Brown both finished their respective singles draws with a third-place finish.

Fellow senior Ashley Murdock played several competitive matches against top ranked competition. The two-time All-C-USA second team selection played a three-set battle with Tulsa's Alexandra Kichoutkin, 7-5, 6-4, 7-5. Murdock finished in fourth-place in her flight. She had a chance at third-place but lost a competitive tussle with Memphis-native Angela McGahee, a Murray State netter. Freshman Courtney Collins, a native of Fulton, Miss., also finished her flight with a fourth-place finish.

In doubles, the Lady Tigers had two-of-three tandems garner third-place finishes. The duo of Marjorie Ondeck and Andrea Arques-Garcia, a freshman from Alicante, Spain, and the tandem of Murdock and Collins, both finished their flights with wins over opponents from conference foe Tulane. The U of M's other doubles pair of Toulch and Brown finished in fourth place.

The U of M roster boasts four seniors for the 2009-10 slate. Murdock leads the way for Coach Lee Taylor Walker's squad which will blend a good amount of experience with youth in his third year at the helm of the Memphis women's tennis program. Joining seniors Murdock, Ondeck, Toulch and Brown this season are three newcomers to the program. Collins, the No. 1 high school player out of Mississippi according to tennisrecruiting.net, will look to have a large impact for Memphis in her first season. The Lady Tigers are also looking for notable contributions from Arques-Garcia, who was ranked No. 90 among all women's tennis players in Spain as an 18-year-old, and Kelly Gray, a transplant from Siegel High School in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Gray was rated as the No. 41 player in the Southeast Region last season.

Memphis' fall tournament tour will continue with stops at the All-American National Invite in Los Angeles, Calif., and the Florida State Invitational. Memphis will also have players competing at the ITF 10k and the Ohio Valley Regional Indoor Championship.