Set To Start
9/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Sept. 8, 2009
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - With two Second Team All-Conference members returning, the 2009-10 USC Upstate women's tennis team will start anew this weekend with the USC Upstate Fall Tournament. The Spartans will look for another strong season from sophomores Cinthya Lazaro and Ana-Sofia Camberos, who anchored the No. 5 and No. 6 slots in Upstate's lineup as freshmen en route to All-A-Sun honors.
To start the season, the Spartans will compete in their own USC Upstate Fall Tournament amongst one of the most challenging fields ever assembled at the Upstate Tennis Courts, with Furman, S.C. State, Wofford, Coastal Carolina, Charleston Southern, Presbyterian, Appalachian State, USC Aiken and UNC Pembroke all sending athletes.
2008 Tournament Recap
Senior Anna Novo fell in the `A' draw singles finals to 63rd-ranked Yevgeniya Stupak of East Tennessee State University in the showcase match of the USC Upstate Fall Tennis Tournament on Sept. 13. Novo, who won both the singles and doubles titles at the 2007 tournament, fell to Stupak, 6-1, 6-1, after defeating Stupak's teammate, Tara Byrne, 6-4, 6-1, to advance to the finals. In doubles play, Novo and sophomore teammate Emilia Milovanovic fell in the semifinals to Byrne and Karina Kedzo, 8-6, but bounced back to defeat Charleston Southern's Andrea Schutte and Brooke Pletcher, 8-4 in the third-place match.
Short Shots
• Since USC Upstate moved to the Division I level in 2007-08, the USC Upstate Fall Tournament champions of the `A' flight singles title are Upstate's Anna Novo in 2007 and ETSU's Yevgeniya Stupak in 2008. The champions of the `A' flight doubles are Upstate's Novo and Emilia Milovanovic in 2007 and in 2008, two ETSU pairs made the finals and the match was not played.
• In two years of Division I play, the Spartans have a record of 111-62 (.641) in tournament matches. In singles play, the Spartans are 74-47 (.612).
• Junior Emilia Milovanovic enters the year looking to move up the career charts in singles, doubles and combined wins. Currently, she is tied for 15th in singles wins with 28, just 17 wins from the top 10. In doubles play, Milovanovic's 44 wins is eighth and she is 11th with 72 combined wins, just eight from the top 10.
• Sophomores Ana-Sofia Camberos and Cinthya Lazaro and junior Emilia Milovanovic were all members of the A-Sun All-Freshman Team. Camberos and Lazaro earned the honors in 2008 and Milovanovic earned it in 2009.
• Junior Emilia Milovanovic posted an 8-6 record in tournament play in 2008, including winning her first tournament singles flight at the ETSU Fall Invitational. She added a 10-3 mark in doubles play with partner Anna Novo.
• Sophomore Cinthya Lazaro notched a 7-1 record in singles play in 2008, including a perfect 3-0 mark at the Wofford Fall Invitational.
• In two years of Division I play, Upstate tennis players have won six tournament titles. Senior Anna Novo accounted for three singles titles and three doubles titles with partner Emilia Milovanovic. Milovanovic also has a singles flight title to her credit.
• The Spartans have lost two starters from the 2008-09 squad, including Anna Novo, who finished her career as the school record-holder in singles (90), doubles (71) and combined (161) wins. She is the only player in the school's history to earn four all-conference awards.
