2005 season preview

August 31, 2005

NORTON, MA- As Wheaton College women's tennis coach Lynn Miller plans her lineup for the 2005 campaign, she concedes the season might be considered a rebuilding year. "Nearly half my lineup will be new players," said Miller. "That's rebuilding in my mind."

Wheaton, which went 8-8 overall and 2-5 in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) in 2004, returns three juniors and two sophomores and welcomes four freshmen to a squad devoid of seniors. In all likelihood, at least three freshmen could participate in each match.

"Our leadership needs to come from the upperclassmen," stated Miller. "They have to set the tone based on their work ethic. The progress of the team will be greatly impacted by whether they can do that."

Miller, who picked up her 250th career win in her 25th season last year, would like to see her Lyons finish in the upper half of the eight-team conference and make the postseason. Miller is joined on her staff by first-year assistant coaches Cortney Shwartz and Woody Freeman, and recruiting coordinator Betty Ann Giles, who begins her fourth season with the program.

"Our goal is to make the NEWMAC Tournament and anything beyond that is gravy this year," added Miller. Wheaton has yet to miss a tournament since it was altered in 2002 to pit the top six teams in a single-elimination format.

"The team is more balanced this year, so we have potential for added depth," continued Miller. "How quickly the new players develop will be key."

Leading the returning players is junior captain Jamie Weiss (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker School), who went 12-10 at number-two singles and 16-3 at first doubles a year ago. Weiss will remain in the top doubles spot while moving up to number-one singles for the Lyons.

Junior Darby McDermott (Briarcliff, NY/Hackley School) will hold down either the second or third singles spot in Wheaton's lineup this season, and her experience at number-two doubles last year will come in handy once Miller decides on pairings. Junior Eden Gudonis (Manchester, MA/Governor Dummer Academy) will add depth to Wheaton's small group of veterans.

The Lyons bring back two sophomores that will have opportunities to help the team. As Wheaton's only freshman starter a year ago, Briana Jackson (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) played fourth singles and number-two doubles, and she will once again compete for a starting spot in the middle of the singles lineup. Maya Milic-Strkalj (Philadelphia, PA/Friends' Central School) started during the spring season and will challenge to start at one of the bottom two singles slots.

Miller's freshman class will be expected to carry more weight than most groups of first-year players, as all four could make an immediate impact. Meghan Doyle (Hingham, MA/Hingham), who was ranked in New England by the United Stated Tennis Association (USTA), will challenge for the number-two singles and doubles spots.

Freshmen Mallory Farmer (Washington, CT/Gunnery School) and Samantha Schraeter (Rye, NY/Rye) are in contention for the fifth and sixth singles positions, and Oriana Federico (Andover, MA/Lawrence Academy) has shown strong potential and could see time in doubles competition.

Miller said that come the regular season, the singles lineup won't change much, except possibly in the sixth spot, and that she'll try different doubles teams in the third position. Miller also said she's trying to set up a more comprehensive spring season to prepare for the following fall.

The Lyons begin the fall leg of their 2005 season with a pair of non-conference home matches and two non-league road contests before hosting a trio of NEWMAC opponents from September 13-20. Following the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Regional Tournament on Sept. 23-25 at Bowdoin, the Lyons travel for their final four NEWMAC matches.

After facing Bowdoin in the regular season finale, Wheaton will compete at the New England Women's Intercollegiate Tennis Tournament (NEWITT) at Amherst on October 14-16. That will prepare the Lyons for the NEWMAC Tournament the following weekend on October 22-23.

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