Jan. 12, 2009

One could use several words to describe the University of South Carolina’s women’s tennis program; winners, competitive, determined, motivated; just to name a few. Consistency is another word frequently associated with the Gamecocks and what they have accomplished over the years.

Starting in 1995, South Carolina began a streak that remains in tact by making the NCAA Tournament field 14 straight years. What makes their streak even more impressive is the fact that 12 of those years have seen the Gamecocks advance beyond the first round. With 14 consecutive bids to the NCAA Tournament, South Carolina owns the 11th longest active streak of appearances in the country.

Taking it a step further, when one factors in the individual NCAA Championships, South Carolina’s streak extends even more. In 1990, the Gamecocks reached the round of 16 in the team tournament and had representatives in the singles and doubles championships. While the team did not compete in the NCAA team events from 1991 to 1994, a time when only 20 teams were selected, the Gamecocks still had players competing in the individual championships. When adding in the singles and doubles tournaments, South Carolina’s streak of being represented in NCAA postseason play balloons to 19.

The person in charge of running the team during those years has remained constant as well. Arlo Elkins, who is approaching 400 career wins thanks to a 383-259 record, returns for his 26th season as the Gamecocks’ head coach, and he and his team look to continue their impressive streaks.

South Carolina has plenty of help in maintaining its consistent tradition of winning thanks to a talented roster. The Gamecocks return the top four of their singles lineup from a year ago with seniors Gira Schofield, Natasa Vuckovic and Suzanna Mansour as well as junior Ana Marija Zubori. Sophomore Miljana Jocic, who played half the spring in the lineup before suffering a knee injury that kept her out, returns completely healthy, and freshmen Dijana Stojic and Ashley Miller will also vie for playing time in the spring.

“Even though we have just seven players on our roster, this is a very talented group,” Elkins said. “We have a lot of experience at the top of our lineup with Gira, Natasa and Ana. Those three have been just about as good as any top three in the SEC. I’m expecting the bottom half to be much improved this year, which makes us more competitive at every position.”

Schofield has had the distinction of playing the No. 1 singles position for virtually every match of her career. Last season was the first time she did not for a couple of matches when she was returning to the lineup after battling the flu. While Schofield may not ascend as high as others on the Gamecocks’ records book charts for victories — the burden of having to play the best player from the opposing team every match — her accomplishments are numerous and have not gone unnoticed.

As a freshman, she earned a place on the All-SEC Second Team and was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Year as well as ITA Southeast Region Rookie of the Year. Her sophomore year, she became only the second player in the history of South Carolina women’s tennis to earn first-team all-conference accolades. Schofield was a second-teamer in 2008 for her third all-league certificate in as many years. She has reached the NCAA Singles Championship in each of her three years with South Carolina, a feat accomplished by only three other players. Should she continue her streak in 2009, she will become the only Gamecock in school history to play in the elite 64-person event four times.

Schofield is coming off a junior year in which she went 23-15 in singles. She stayed in the national singles rankings the entire season for the first time in her career, and she accomplished another first by cracking the top 25 at one point during the spring. She and Zubori also soared as high as No. 9 in the country for doubles. Schofield won the first NCAA Singles Championship match in her career and nearly upset the eventual winner in the second round to finish with a national ranking of 40th, the best mark by a Gamecock since 2004. It was two matches, though, that really defined Schofield’s season.

Against Vanderbilt, a team that finished ranked 10th in the country, Schofield fought off multiple match points in a third set with the team score tied 3-3 before finding a way to win in a tiebreaker. In similar fashion, the Gamecocks were in danger of losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to VCU with the score tied 3-3 and Schofield down 5-4 in a third set. Once again, she got the match to a tiebreaker and overcame several match points in propelling the Gamecocks into the second round.

“Gira has always been a hard worker and a very good tennis player, but those two matches showed me something special,” Elkins said. “The best players in the country lay it all on the line in moments when most people would be extremely nervous. It’s the same way in all sports. The top players make the plays when they have to do it. Gira showed last year she is capable of being one of the elite players in the country because she can find a way to win and will never quit in a match when she’s behind. She showed that she’s not afraid to handle pressure, and that’s what you need in a number one singles player.”

Playing behind Schofield for the third year in a row is the ultra-talented Zubori. A citizen of both France and Serbia — a distinction that landed her on the inaugural issue of The State newspaper’s Go Gamecocks The Magazine’s list of the 10 Most Intriguing People in USC Sports — Zubori blitzed the college tennis scene as a freshman by putting up a 31-6 record, which was good enough to earn a place on the All-SEC Second Team. She was practically unstoppable in dual matches, going 18-3 and posted an 8-3 slate in SEC play.

Zubori’s sophomore year did not feature the flashy numbers of her rookie campaign, but her 22-11 mark still made her a force in the lineup. She spent the entire season ranked among the top 85 players in the country and served as the other half of the Gamecocks’ top doubles team with Schofield. A knee and ankle injury in the latter half of the spring slowed Zubori down somewhat, but her drive and determination to keep playing prevailed over those injuries. She managed to still win critical matches for South Carolina despite her decreased mobility.

After coming in at No. 54 in the fall 2008 singles rankings, Zubori appears poised to make a leap that will put her in a class among the nation’s best. She compiled an 8-2 record over the course of the fall and defeated four players with a ranking higher than hers. Zubori’s only two losses came to nation’s No. 2-rated player and Schofield, who held the No. 31 position. With a calmer attitude and more mature demeanor on the court, Zubori will be even tougher to beat in the spring.

“The funny thing about life for everybody is that sooner or later you grow up,” Elkins said. “I think that over the summer and over the fall, Ana really matured as a tennis player. She’s playing at an unbelievably high level and if she can continue to play like that then not only will we have a successful year, she will have a very successful year individually as well.”

If any player on the team deserves the title of unsung hero it would be Vuckovic. Having played No. 3 singles the past two years, she does not have as many opportunities to play ranked players and bolster her status in the national rankings. Without the glitz and glamour of playing one of the top two positions, she has quietly gone about her business.

With a deceptive style of play, good instincts and a high tennis IQ, Vuckovic’s numbers stack up with just about any Gamecock in the program’s history. She has a 34-9 record the past two years in dual matches, which includes a 17-3 mark against the SEC. For her career, Vuckovic has gone 48-16 in duals and is 23-8 versus league opponents. Vuckovic has won no fewer than 23 matches per season the past three years, making her one of only seven Gamecocks to post three consecutive 20-win campaigns. After the fall 2008 season, Vuckovic inched her way into the top 10 career lists for singles victories with 80 and combined wins with 143.

Like Schofield and Zubori, Vuckovic has won her fair share of awards during her freshman through junior years. She is one of just three players in school history to receive All-SEC praise three times having made the second team in each of her three seasons. Vuckovic has also been named the team’s MVP the past two years, sharing the honors in 2007 with Zubori and is a two-time winner of the SEC’s Player of the Week award.

“It’s easy to take Natasa for granted because we enter every match knowing she is probably going to get us a point,” Elkins said. “Having a player you can count on for a win almost every time is a real luxury as a coach. I have complete confidence in her entering any match. It doesn’t matter what the other player is ranked or the team we’re playing, she is capable of beating just about anyone. When her career is over here, her name will appear all over the records book.”

A potential challenge to Vuckovic for a spot in the top half of the lineup is one of the Gamecocks’ two newcomers, Stojic. She comes to Columbia, S.C., with a wealth of competitive experience from playing the International Tennis Federation junior circuit. Stojic, who claims citizenship with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia, played Fed Cup for Bosnia-Herzegovina for four years between 2003 and 2007. In 2006, she went 5-0 in Fed Cup singles matches. While she did not compete in any fall tournaments, Stojic’s talent level on the court is without question.

“Dijana is a big addition to our squad with the experience and ability she brings,” Elkins said. “Even though she didn’t play in the fall, having the entire semester to get adjusted is a big plus for international players. I’m sure it’ll take her a little bit of time to get going in the spring since it’s been a while since she had the opportunity to play a competitive match. Dijana will certainly help with our doubles as well. By season’s end, I expect her to be very tough to beat.”

Mansour is looking to wrap up her career with the Gamecocks on a positive note after struggling through the spring season. An ankle injury at Tennessee in March hampered her play and confidence the rest of the season, but she appears to have put it behind her with a successful fall. The highlight of it was at the Wildcat Invitational in October where she teamed with Miller to win the B flight of doubles. Mansour and Miller collected four consecutive victories, but perhaps the more impressive part of their run was the leadership role Mansour played in helping her less experienced partner through tight situations.

“Suzie has responded well this fall after a tough spring,” Elkins said. “She is a very coachable player and always listens intently when you’re trying to help her improve. If she continues to do what we ask of her there’s a good chance she will figure in somewhere in the bottom half of the lineup.”

A hard worker with a positive attitude, Jocic began her career at South Carolina the previous fall by going 14-4 and was a sure bet to play either the No. 4 or No. 5 singles position. After running her record to 20-6, Jocic began fighting problems with her knee and following a pair of losses, the pain was too much to bear. She underwent a minor operation to repair the damage in April and now is ready to play a complete season.

Jocic went 4-5 during this past fall, but her play at the Wildcat Invitational was encouraging. She posted a 2-1 record at the event and managed to overcome a 6-2 first-set loss in one of the victories. Two of her losses at the prior tournaments happened despite her winning the first set, so Jocic will look to do a better job of closing matches come the spring.

“Miljana is a very hard worker and does whatever we ask her do,” Elkins said. “We’re working with her on getting sort of that killer instinct back so that when she sees an opportunity to put her opponent away she takes it. She has a big serve and a lot of athletic ability, so she has the potential to be a force for us in the lineup.”

Miller came to the Gamecocks as one of the top 50 recruits in the nation according to TennisRecruiting.net. She played in numerous United States Tennis Association regional and national tournaments during her career. Miller ended her senior year ranked 12th in the Girls’ 18 Singles Division of the USTA Eastern Section. She posted a 24-1 record playing for Valley Central High School in Montgomery, N.Y., her senior year and won the state public high school girls’ singles title.

Elkins and the coaching staff gave Miller exactly what she needed as an incoming freshman in having her play more tournaments in the fall than any other Gamecock. She began with a 3-0 record after playing at the UVa Invitational and later in the season reached the final of her respective flight at the Wildcat Invitational. Miller ended her first fall with a 7-6 record with four of her defeats coming in three sets.

“Ashley showed a lot of promise during the fall,” Elkins said. “She is very dedicated to our team and works extremely hard every day in practice. There’s never a question of whether or not she’s giving 100 percent. Because of her attitude and work ethic, there’s no doubt in my mind that she will just keep getting better and be a contributor for us.”

A host of changes were made to the Gamecocks’ doubles teams during the fall. Even though Schofield and Zubori entered the fall ranked No. 19 in the country and have played the past two seasons at the top slot, the two are not expected to play together this spring. In fact, they did not play a single match together during the fall in favor of some new looks.

The most successful duo turned out to be that of Vuckovic and Zubori. The pair went 6-1, scoring a win over one ranked team and winning the A draw of the Wildcat Invitational. The two ended the fall riding a five-match winning streak and could be in line to play one doubles to start the spring.

Jocic and Schofield may be the Gamecocks’ No. 2 team. They played just one tournament during the fall but put together a 3-1 record with their only loss coming to Zubori and Vuckovic in the final of the Wildcat Invite. During their run to the championship match, Jocic and Schofield recorded a victory against an impressive Notre Dame tandem.

Mansour and Miller made their case for playing the third slot after winning their flight at the Northwestern tournament. The two started 0-3 together, but showed a great deal of improvement in Evansville, Ill. The potential also exists for Stojic to team with Mansour while Miller continues to get adjusted to collegiate tennis.

“Doubles is certainly an area we’re tying to emphasize more in practice,” Elkins said. “Trying to win four singles matches is very difficult, particularly in SEC matches, so we have to improve our play there so we aren’t trying to dig ourselves out of a hole. We have the talent to win four, but it takes a lot of pressure off when you only have to win three.”

A challenging spring schedule awaits South Carolina starting in January, and it figures to be even tougher given that 15 of 22 regular-season matches will be played on the road. Of the 20 opponents on the slate, 16 advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2008 and 10 made it to at least the second round.

“On top of having the SEC schedule, which is always one of the toughest in the country, we have an excellent non-conference schedule as well,” Elkins said. “We added some new teams this year in order to beef up our schedule because we think we’ll have a good team and wanted to schedule matches accordingly.”

The Gamecocks get started Jan. 16 hosting BYU and then Jan. 21 travel to Furman. They then take on Miami (Ohio) and Michigan on the road Jan. 23 and 25. After a Jan. 28 home match with Winthrop, South Carolina and Ohio State square off in Durham, N.C., in one of 15 regional sites Jan. 31 as part of the ITA National Indoor Championships. The following day the Gamecocks face either VCU or Duke.

February is a light month for South Carolina with only two matches on the slate. More matches would be added should South Carolina win the regional in Durham, as it would head to Madison, Wis., for the final rounds of the indoor championships over Feb. 13-16. On Feb. 22, the Gamecocks will take on rival Clemson on the Tigers’ home courts.

SEC play begins March 6 in Nashville, Tenn., with a contest against Vanderbilt, and then the Gamecocks take on Kentucky on March 8 in Lexington, Ky. South Carolina then heads to Las Vegas to play UNLV on March 11 before coming back to Columbia for its first home matches of the year. The Gamecocks host Tennessee and Georgia on March 13 and 15 at Maxcy Gregg Tennis Center.

After its first two home matches, South Carolina hits the road again for its final two non-conference matches of the year. First up is Florida International in Miami on March 20, and two days later, Carolina plays in Tampa, Fla., versus USF.

The Gamecocks finish out their conference schedule first playing Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., on March 27 and then hosting Ole Miss two days afterward. South Carolina is on the road the following weekend at Arkansas and LSU on April 3 and 5 before hosting its final two matches of the year. Carolina faces Auburn and Alabama on April 10 and 12 in Columbia and finishes out the regular season on the road playing Florida on April 18.

This year’s SEC Tournament will be held in Fayetteville, Ark., over April 23-26. All 12 teams compete in the tournament. The NCAA Tournament starts with first- and second-round action from May 8-10 at 16 regional sites to be announced when the draw is released. The round of 16 and beyond along with the singles and doubles championships are set for May 15-25 at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas. The men’s championships will be played at the same time in College Station.