Gamecocks End Season Ranked At No. 12 In Nation
May 24, 2018
Final ITA Team Rankings
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina women’s tennis (21-7, 11-2 SEC) finished the 2018 season ranked No. 12 in the nation, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) announced Wednesday.
No. 12 marks the highest final ranking for the Gamecocks since the 1999 season when they were ranked at No. 12. It is the second-highest final ranking in program history behind the 1995 season when the team was ranked at No. 11.
The Gamecocks spent 17 straight weeks in the Top 25 from Jan. 3 – May 23, with eight straight weeks in the Top 10 from March 13 – May 3. The team reached a No. 5 ranking on April 3, the highest ranking in program history.
As the rankings sugget, the Gamecocks are coming off a historic season full of program firsts and milestones. The Gamecocks reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the second straight season with the No. 10 seed, the highest in the event’s current format for the program.
At 11-2 in the league, South Carolina finished the SEC regular season tied for second place with Florida, which is tied with the 1996 team for the best finish in school history in the regular season standings. South Carolina went undefeated in SEC road play this season for the first time in program history, including wins at Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Georgia, Auburn and Alabama.
The team’s 11 wins in SEC play were the most in program history. The 1995-96 team set the previous record of nine that was equaled by the 2015-16 squad. South Carolina’s 10-match SEC winning streak from March 1 to March 31 was the longest in program history by four matches with the previous longest streak being six matches.
South Carolina is one of 10 SEC teams to make the Top 75 final rankings, trailing just Vanderbilt (No. 2), Georgia (No. 7) and Ole Miss (No. 8).
Final singles and doubles rankings for the 2018 season will be announced on May 30.
For updates on the Gamecocks, continue to check back with GamecocksOnline.com or follow the team on social media (@GamecockWTennis).
