Lady Cardinals Take on No. 16 Fresno State at NCAA Tournament :: Lamar to play Bulldogs at 1 p.m. PT on Friday

May 8, 2008

FRESNO, Calif. - The Lamar University women's tennis team, winners of the Southland Conference's automatic berth for the first time, will open up NCAA tournament play on Friday at 1 p.m. PT against No. 16 Fresno State at the Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center in Fresno, Calif.

The Lady Cardinals are making their first appearance in the NCAA tournament after capturing the first Southland Conference Tournament crown in school history. They have posted a season record of 24 wins and two losses (22-2 vs. Division I opponents), just two wins shy of the school record of 26 wins set by the 1983 team that went 26-9.

The Lady Cards winning percentage of 91.6 percent is the best in school history. The two previous best winning percentages in school history her posted by the 1983 team who won 74.2 percent of their matches and the 1984 team that won 63.6 percent with a 21-12 record. Those two teams and this years' squad are the only teams in school history to win 20 or more matches in a season.

Individually Lamar has been led by freshman Mariaryeni Gutierrez who posted a perfect 23-0 record during the regular season. She earned first team all-Southland Conference honors at No. 2 singles and was named the conference Freshman of the Year. Gutierrez went 10-0 at No. 2 singles and 1-0 at No. 1 singles during the conference slate then picked up a pair of wins to help LU to the tournament title to improve to 25-0.

Gutierrez also picked up second team all conference honors at No. 1 doubles with partner Andrea Martinez. The duo posted a conference record of 9-1 and an overall mark of 18-2.

Martinez, a fifth year senior for the Lady Cardinals, played exclusively at No. 1 where she posted a record of 14-6.

Sophomore Kaltrina Harbuzi also has also been strong for the Lady Cardinals this year, compiling a record of 14-2. She was named to the SLC first team at No. 3 singles after posting a 10-1 record in conference play. She went 9-1 at No. 3 during the conference season and 1-0 at No. 2. For the season Harbuzi went 13-2, going 11-2 at No. 3 and 2-0 at No. 2.

Harbuzi also picked up second team all-conference honors at No. 3 doubles with freshman Salina Aranda. The pair posted a record of 6-3 in SLC play and a season record of 11-4. They went 10-4 at No. 3 and went 1-0 at No. 1 doubles.

Maria Gutierrez had a strong junior campaign for the Lady Cardinals, amassing a record of 19-4 for the year, playing predominately at No. 4. During SLC play she went 9-2, with an 8-2 record at No. 4. while adding six wins at No. 3, one win at No. 2 and one win at No. 5.

Manijee Ashrafi played the bulk of the matches at No. 5 for Lamar throughout the season, posting a 7-3 record in the five hole. The sophomore finished the year with a 15-5 record, playing matches at two, three, four, five and six.

Sophomore Manami Kuroda picked up SLC honors with a selection to the second team at No. 6. She posted a 5-0 mark in conference play and an overall record of 10-0 at No. 6 for the year. At the SLC tournament she stepped in at No. 5 and played a crucial role in the Lady Cards championship.

Fresno State advanced the NCAA Tournament by clinching its seventh-straight WAC Championship with a 4-1 win over Boise State, earning the automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. This is the 13th-straight NCAA Tournament appearance for the Bulldogs and they have reached the Sweet 16 three out of the past four seasons. This is also the third time they have hosted the first and second rounds and the second straight year to be hosting as one of the nations top 16 seeds.

Individually, Melanie Gloria who is the three-time defending WAC Player of the Year and ranked No. 16 in singles leads the way for Fresno State. Anastasia Petukhova who plays at No. 2 and Tinesta Rowe, No. 4, are also among the top players in the country in singles play, ranking 22nd and 110th respectively.

Gloria and Rowe are ranked second in the country in doubles while the Bulldog tandem of Petukhova and Renata Kucerkova, who play at No. 2, are ranked No. 33 in the NCAA.

Arizona State and Sacramento State will open the four-team regional at 11 a.m. on Friday with the winner of both matches advancing to the regional championship on Saturday, May 10 at 1 p.m.