Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Tennis team wins fifth national championship

By on December 7, 2007

John Isner defeats Illinois
KELLY WEGEL
John Isner defeats Illinois's Kevin Anderson during the singles portion of the Championship game.

The 2007 Georgia men’s tennis team finished 32-0 and won its fifth national championship in Athens.

The Bulldogs dominated each contest during the season, giving up only 13 points for the year.

“The pressure starts creeping up,” said head coach Manuel Diaz.

“These guys have been dominant through, by far, the toughest schedule we’ve ever had.”

During the season and SEC tournament the Bulldogs had to go through 13 top-25 ranked teams.

“I cannot think of a better way to go out – my last collegiate duel match as a national champion,” said John Isner, who is now competing in the professional circuit.

Men’s tennis notes:

 Pepperdine defeats Georgia 4-2 in the 2006 NCAA National Champ-ionship in Palo Alto, Calif. This loss made John Isner decide to come back for one last shot at a national championship.

 Georgia wins the ITA National Indoor Cham-pionships in Chicago, Ill. after beating Ohio State 4-0 in the final.

 Georgia finished its second consecutive regular season undefeated and earned the top seed in the NCAA men’s tournament.

 Georgia defeated Illinois in the 2007 NCAA National Cham-pionship 4-0.

Women’s tennis notes:

 The Georgia women’s tennis team was ranked No. 24 in the preseason.

 Georgia climbed up to No. 1 after beating then-No. 1 Florida on Mar. 11.

 Georgia suffered its only regular loss of the season at Auburn after top singles players Natalie Frazier and Monika Dancevic were out with injuries.

 The Lady Bulldogs snapped Florida’s streak of five straight SEC tournament championships by beating the Gators 4-2 in Lexington, Ky.

 Georgia’s season ended in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament after losing to California 4-1.