St. Peter, Minn. – Gustavus Adolphus College is set to host the 2014 USTA/ITA Midwest Regional Championships at the Swanson Indoor Tennis Center and Brown Outdoor Courts in St. Peter, Minnesosta this weekend. The tournament will run from Friday, September 19 through Sunday, September 21 and will feature 25 of the top schools in the region.
The Small College (NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community College) singles and doubles champions from the USTA/ITA Regional Championships will advance to the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships, held October 10-13 at the Three Oaks Tennis Center in Fort Myers, Florida. The USTA/ITA National Small College Championships are comprised of the eight regional champions (and/or at-large selections) from NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community Colleges. Over 8,000 student-athletes from NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA, Junior and Community Colleges compete at one of the 84 USTA/ITA Regional Championships held across the country.
More than 100 of the top players in the Midwest will take part in the tournament, which will begin with singles matches on Friday morning at 9 a.m. Megan Humphreys of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater comes in as the No. 1 overall seed in the singles draw. Behind Humphreys sits second-seeded Abigail Pellett of Carroll University, third-seeded Michaela Schulz of host Gustavus Adolphus, and fourth-seeded Shelby Henderson of the University of St. Thomas.
The doubles competition will begin on Friday immediately after the completion of the second round of singles play. The duo of Kara Lefsrud and Bridget Noack of St. Thomas will enter the tournament as the top-seeded doubles team. They will be challenged by second-seeded Michaela Schulz and Laurel Krebsbach of Gustavus, third-seeded Haleigh McPeek and Max Mella of Carthage College, and fourth-seeded Bridget Bellissimo and Kimmy Mrozek of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
The Swanson Indoor Tennis Center, located on the west edge of the Gustavus campus, will serve as headquarters for the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional Championships, with matches taking place in Swanson and the adjacent Brown Outdoor Courts.
The ITA National Small College Championships began in 1986 and annually crowns men’s and women’s singles and doubles national champions in each of the ITA’s four small college divisions (NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community College). The USTA/ITA National Small College Championship is the only national championship event for singles and doubles at the NCAA Division II and NAIA levels. It is also the only tournament that combines all levels of Junior/Community College (NJCAA Divisions I and III and the California division). The singles and doubles champions at each divisional level will then compete to become the overall “Super Bowl” champions. The “Super Bowl” champions earn wild cards into the USTA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships with the opportunity to win the culminating event held at the USTA-Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
As the governing body of collegiate tennis, the ITA promotes both the athletic and academic achievements of the collegiate tennis community. The ITA, which was founded in 1956 and is based in Skillman, N.J., administers numerous regional and national championships, the ITA Collegiate Summer Circuit, presented by the USTA, and the ITA Rankings for men’s and women’s tennis at the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and Junior College levels. The ITA also has a comprehensive awards program for players and coaches to honor excellence in academics, leadership and sportsmanship. To learn more about the ITA, click here.
For complete draws and updated results following each day, please follow the link below to the tournament website.