The Alabama women’s tennis team made Capstone history before enjoying their winter break. In the 2011 Campbell/Intercollegiate Tennis Association College Tennis Rankings, Alabama has the highest number of top ranked players in school history. Three singles athletes fought their way up to the top 75 while a pair of doubles partners landed in the top 35.
Singles placers include junior Courtney McLane at No. 72 and sophomore Alexa Guarachi at No. 63. Guarachi earned a notable at the ITA/Riviera All-American Championships to take her place, while McLane closed in on 72 in the nation by playing to the 16-man bracket of the Southern Regional Championships.
Freshman Mary Anne Macfarlane holds the No. 15 spot in the ranks. Macfarlane sealed her top 20 title by winning the Regional Singles Championships in the fall. Her other singles wins throughout the late 2010 season only added to her impressive dossier.
“I’m glad I can be where I am but I just want to be better,” Macfarlane said.
Head coach Jenny Mainz said she thinks that Macfarlane’s high spot is a well-deserved testament to her attitude and her will to win.
“It’s nice to see recognition for that kind of hard work,” Mainz said. “If we’re running sprints or conditioning, she’s the front-runner. In everything she does, she has that championship mentality, in line with what she wants to achieve. I think her potential is unlimited. She’s the kind of player who doesn’t just have the athleticism or the talent. She has the desire, the work ethic, that X factor. All of those the things you can’t coach. She just has it, it’s intrinsic.”
Macfarlane also makes an appearance in the doubles ranks with her partner, sophomore Antonia Foehse, at No. 32. The duo climbed to their spot by taking 2-1 match scores at both the Duke Fab Four Invitational and the SEC Fall Coaches’ Classic throughout September. In addition, their impeccable chemistry allotted them three wins at the Southern Regional Championships in late October.
Guarachi and McLane were the next duo to take a national rank at No. 6. The two have partnered up for their second consecutive season and don’t plan to slow down. The USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships saw the pair in its semifinal round, when in the preceding months the partners won a series of draws at both the Southern Regional Championships and SEC Fall Coaches’ Classic.
During the fall, the Crimson Tide worked on finding compatible doubles teams and building individual tactics. The spring match lineup will bring all of Alabama’s efforts together and show their aptitude as a unit.
The team’s next event will be in Tallahassee, Fla., on Jan. 15 at Florida State University. The quad tournament will also host Central Florida and the University of Iowa.
“We’ll get to see a lot of Big 10 players, ACC players and Conference USA players,” Mainz said. “It’s a good way to initiate the spring season.”
Mainz said that the team’s knowledge of who they are up against really benefits their in-game attitude, not only in the upcoming tournament but in each match set for this season.
“It’s all about everybody taking care of their role, staying healthy, competing hard day-in and day-out, whether it’s practice or match and staying focused on what the team objectives are,” she said.
According to Mainz, the entire team is excited to jump right into a quad tournament. With their fluidity improvement and the encouraging results from the fall season, they have no reason not to be optimistic.
“I think we need to keep doing what we’re doing,” Macfarlane said. “We’re all working very hard and finding out what it takes to be our best. That’s all you can really ask for.”
