Cowgirl tennis qualifies for NCAA tournament

A small room erupted in celebration in Gallagher-Iba on Tuesday evening, for the OSU women?s tennis team received the news that its season would continue.

Coach Chris Young and his team huddled around a large screen TV to hear their name announced as one of the 64 teams that will compete in the NCAA Women?s Tennis Team Tournament.

?I?m really excited for the girls,? Young said. ?When I came here three years ago, I knew the challenges that were ahead of us. Today is the culmination of three years of hard work and determination, and it?s great for the girls.?

The Cowgirls will face Georgia Tech in the first round, a welcomed opponent.

?I knew that we would be right there playing a team that is pretty even with us,? Young said. ?We have seen them quite a bit. When you have some familiarity for an opponent, it helps us prepare for the moment.?

The Cowgirls? first match in the single-elimination tournament will be May 11, and Young said his team would be well prepared.

?I have experience in this, understanding how the schedule works out this first week will be tricky with finals, but after this week my experience will help them make the transition to post season,? Young said.

Junior C. C. Sardinha anticipated the reward of a postseason, and her hopes built up going into the selection show.

?We are pumped,? Sardinha said. ?There were hints that we would get in. It was just nice to finally hear it.?

Sardinha echoed the confidence that the Cowgirls are taking into the postseason and gave a glimpse of what has been behind the team?s success this season.

?We will play Stanford, UCLA, anyone; bring it on,? she said.

If the Cowgirls knock down their first three opponents, they could face UCLA in the quarterfinals, but that is a long way off.

Malika Rose, a junior for the Cowgirls, said the team is focused on the task at hand.

?We had this goal at the beginning of the year, but we didn?t think it was that close,? Rose said. ?We just want to take it one match at a time and focus on our advantage in the doubles matchups.?

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