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FeedFans Gain Glimpse of Future Tennis Stars
National Collegiate Tennis Classic features top-ranked teams, players
Though just a freshman, Stanford's Krista Hardebeck is ranked No. 2 nationally and leads the women's singles field at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic, Jan. 17-20, at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage.
Stanford Athletics
Coachella Valley tennis enthusiasts have an opportunity to see future stars of the sport when the National Collegiate Tennis Classic hits the courts Jan. 17-20 at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage.
The 34th annual tournament features some of the top college teams and individual players in the country as determined by the 2012 Final and 2013 pre-season Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings in singles and doubles.
Four top 10 women’s teams are expected to be in the field, including No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 Southern Cal, No. 5 Stanford and No. 8 North Carolina. On the men’s side, five top 10 team entries are led by No. 1 Southern Cal, No. 3 UCLA, No. 5 Georgia, No. 6 Pepperdine and No. 7 Kentucky.
Stanford freshman Krista Hardebeck, ranked No. 2 in the nation in Division I women’s play, heads the women’s singles field. A product of Santa Ana, Calif., Hardebeck lost a second-round match to the nation’s No. 1 player, Florida’s Sofie Oyen, at the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships in November in Flushing, NY.
Mississippi’s Jonas Lutjen, ranked No. 5 in the nation in Division 1, is the top-ranked player in the men's singles field. The senior earned All-American honors last year and helped the Rebels reach the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament. He is originally from Schessel, Germany. Lutjen scored an impressive win over No. 2 seed Peter Kobelt of Ohio State at the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships in November in Flushing, NY. Kobelt is currently the No. 1 ranked player in the nation.
Matches begin at 8 a.m. on Jan. 18-19, and 9 a.m. Jan. 19. The singles final begins at noon Jan. 19.
