Halcomb and Van Lieshout Head To ITA Regionals
Freshmen to compete this weekend at Michigan State
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Oct. 23, 2002 MILWAUKEE -
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's tennis team (1-3) will send a pair of representatives to the ITA Midwest Regionals, hosted by Michigan State University, for play this weekend. Freshman Alyssa Halcomb will compete in the singles draw and will be joined by classmate Margie Van Lieshout in the doubles tournament.
The Series
The Panthers haven't had a player compete at the ITA Midwest Regional since the 1997-98 season, when Tori Whitlinger lost in her first-round match, 6-3, 6-1. Whitlinger and Jill Sauer competed in the doubles draw, losing 6-4, 6-1, in their opening round.
Last Time Out
The Panthers dropped a pair of non-league matches in Indianapolis Saturday, falling to IUPUI and Division II power Indianapolis by identical 5-2 marks. Saturday morning against the Jaguars, the Panthers picked up their two wins in No. 5 and No. 6 singles, with Megan Brown and Erin Felber collecting the victories. Brown was a 7-5, 6-1 winner, while Felber won by a 6-2, 6-2 count. In the afternoon matchup, the Panthers got wins from Van Lieshout in No. 2 singles and Cassie Kuranz in No. 4 singles. Van Lieshout picked up her fourth career win by a 6-3, 6-3 margin, while Kuranz needed three sets to win, 6-1, 3-6, 10-5.
Off and Running
The two newcomers to this year's team both had impressive debuts Sept. 21 at Whitewater, collecting both of the team's wins. At No. 2 singles, Alyssa Halcomb collected her first collegiate win, winning in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2, while Margie Van Lieshout also picked up career win number one at No. 4 singles, winning 6-3, 5-7, 6-2. The pair also had a strong weekend at the Ball State Invitational, where they both finished fourth in their flight. Van Lieshout picked up her fourth win of the season at Indianapolis, raising her record to 4-3 on the season.
Caulk Climbs the Lists
Senior Molly Caulk stands in fourth place all-time in career matches with 74 matches played after the match with UMKC on Oct. 12. Caulk moved alone into fourth place with the season-opening match at UW-Whitewater on Sept. 21. She ended last season with 72, tied with Lori Rocklewitz, who played from 1993-97, and Tori Whitlinger, who played from 1994-98. Angi Bayer holds the school mark with 86 matches played, a mark Caulk is on pace to break during the Horizon League Tournament after missing both matches this weekend.
Freshmen Finding Success
Freshmen Margie Van Lieshout and Alyssa Halcomb both have had a solid start to their freshman seasons. Van Lieshout picked up her fourth win of the season Saturday at Indianapolis, while Halcomb won her third match against Missouri-Kansas City on Oct. 12. The Panthers have had a trend of success from freshmen, as UWM has had a freshman win at least six matches each year for the past three years. Megan Brown picked up six last season, while Cassie Kuranz won the same number in her freshman campaign. Molly Caulk started the trend by winning nine matches during her rookie season in 1999-2000. The UWM record for wins in a season by a freshman is 14, held by Angi Bayer in 1992-93 and Tori Whitlinger in 1994-95.
Shut Out City
The Panthers picked up their first win of the season on Oct. 12 in Chicago against Missouri-Kansas City by a 7-0 mark. Not only did the win end a 28-match losing skid for Milwaukee, it was also the first time in head coach Erin Jex's two-plus years at the helm of the Milwaukee squad that the Panthers shut out an opponent.
Player of the Week
Freshman Alyssa Halcomb was named the Horizon League's Player of the Week for the week ending Oct. 13 after leading the Panthers to a vicotry over Missouri-Kansas City. The victory ended the Panthers' 28-match losing streak and was the first time since head coach Erin Jex took over as head coach that the Panthers shut out an opponent. Halcomb was the first Panther to earn the league's weekly honor since Kristine Miller won the award on April 27, 2000.
Spring Break in Sunny Milwaukee
For the first time since the 1998-99 season, and the first time since coach Erin Jex took over the UWM tennis program, the Panthers will not be taking a training trip during Spring Break. Last year, UWM traveled to Texas for matches against Texas-Pan American, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and St. Mary's of Texas. The Panthers went 0-3 on last year's trip. Since moving to Division I in 1990, the Panthers are 9-17 all-time on Spring Break trips.
Up Next
The Panthers have completed competition for the fall. UWM will resume competition in the spring by opening up with Horizon League rival UIC on Feb. 1, 2003, in Chicago.
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