University of Tennessee Athletics
Whoriskey, Zubor Claim ITA Doubles Title
October 07, 2007 | Women's Tennis
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. ??? With their sixth consecutive victory over a ranked opponent and seventh overall triumph of the week, the 10th-ranked University of Tennessee doubles team of sophomores Caitlin Whoriskey and Zs??fia Zubor claimed the doubles title at the Riviera/Intercollegiate Tennis Association Women???s All-American Tennis Championships, presented by Fila, in Pacific Palisades, Calif., Sunday afternoon. The Lady Vol duo defeated the No. 3-ranked pairing of Kristi Miller and Whitney McCray from Georgia Tech, 7-5, 6-3, to close out its remarkable performance at the competition.
???We???ve had a lot of great players in our program over the years that have never won this tournament,??? UT co-head coach Mike Patrick said. ???What these two players accomplished this week is truly special and remarkable.
???This just shows our talent level is up there with anyone in the nation,??? Patrick said. ???I could not be more proud of Caitlin and Zs??fia. They did everything they needed to do all week. They listened to everything I had to say and executed the game plan for each match to perfection.???
The Tennessee tandem becomes the first team since 2004 to win the title after advancing through the qualifying draw and fifth Southeastern Conference squad to win the event since 2001. Whoriskey and Zubor totaled seven wins on the week with three in qualifying action and four in the main draw. The sophomore combo moved its overall record to 12-1 on the season and 20-5 since joining forces near the end of the 2006-07 campaign. During the week-long tournament, it defeated the top teams from four different conferences, including the Big Ten, SEC, Pac-10 and Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Orange and White duo began its road to the title in the competition???s qualifying draw. In what proved to be a sign of things to come, Whoriskey and Zubor dominated in their initial contest, blowing by the Illinois pairing of Megan Fudge and Leah Finnegan by a perfect 8-0 score. The pair of second-year Lady Vols continued its solid play the following day with two triumphs over ranked squads to advance to the main draw. It first took down No. 54 Sarah Fansler and Leyla Enterkhabi of Southern California, 8-4, before beating No. 35 Elizabeth Plotkin and Ellah Nze from Duke by the same score.
In its first match in the main draw, the Big Orange was pitted against the seventh-ranked squad of Diana Srebrovic and Csilla Borsanyi from SEC-rival Florida. In a hard-fought contest, Whoriskey and Zubor claimed an 8-6 victory to move on to the quarterfinals where another battle ensued. The Lady Vols emerged victorious once again, squeaking by UCLA???s No. 4-ranked team of Riza Zalameda and Yasmin Schnack, 9-7.
Facing its highest-rated opponent to date in Clemson???s No. 2-ranked pairing of Federica van Adrichem and Ani Mijacika in the semifinals, the UT unit posted a gutsy, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4) conquest. On the final day of action, Whoriskey and Zubor closed out their stay on the West Coast in dramatic fashion, sweeping 2007 NCAA Team Champion Georgia Tech???s third-ranked squad of Kristi Miller and Whitney McCray in straight sets, 7-5, 6-3, to claim the doubles title in the first of three national championship events during the 2007-08 collegiate tennis season.
The Big Orange will next be in action when the team travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., for the ITA Southeast Regional, Oct. 18-21.
ROAD TO THE ITA ALL-AMERICAN DOUBLES TITLE
Qualifying Draw
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. Megan Fudge/Leah Finnegan (ILL) ??? 8-0
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 54 Sarah Fansler/Leyla Enterkhabi (USC) ??? 8-4
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 35 Elizabeth Plotkin/Ellah Nze (DUKE) ??? 8-4
Main Draw
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 7 Diana Srebrovic/Csilla Borsanyi (UF) ??? 8-6
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 4 Riza Zalameda/Yasmin Schnack (UCLA) ??? 9-7
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 2 Federica van Adrichem/Ani Mijacika (CLEMSON) ??? 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4)
No. 10 Caitlin Whoriskey/Zs??fia Zubor (UT) def. No. 3 Kristi Miller/Whitney McCray (GT) ??? 7-5, 6-3
