ATLANTA/MILWAUKEE – Mount Mary University and the University of California Santa Cruz have each accepted an invitation to join the Great South Athletic Conference (GSAC) as affiliated members for the sport of women's tennis.
Both the Blue Angels and Banana Slugs will compete for the 2014 GSAC Women's Tennis Championship this April on the campus of Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Ga.
"The Great South Athletic Conference is thrilled to announce the additions of Mount Mary and UC Santa Cruz to our league in the sport of women's tennis," said GSAC commissioner Joeleen Akin. "With their dedication to maintaining high academic standards while fostering top-notch athletic competition, they were natural fits to join for this sport to give us seven schools competing for the conference title."
Mount Mary and UC Santa Cruz will join existing members Agnes Scott College, Mills College, Salem College, Wesleyan College and Trinity Washington University to vie for conference supremacy in the sport of tennis.
"The GSAC presented us with a great opportunity to reward the ladies after a record-setting season," MMU Director of Athletics Marc Heidorf said. "I am excited to have them represent Mount Mary in a conference tournament setting."
The Blue Angel tennis program recorded its most prolific season in school history last fall as its 6-5 overall mark was the first winning regular season in the history of MMU tennis. The tandem of senior Katie Wolk (Oshkosh, Wis.) and freshman Ana Mercado (Grafton, Wis.) also earned all-AD3I honors last fall, becoming the first post-season tennis award-winners in Mount Mary history.
"We face an incredible challenge in Atlanta," head tennis coach Tom Troast said. "We will face two national powers who are frequently ranked in the national polls and NCAA Tournament participants, but our team is excited and honored to be representing Mount Mary on this stage. This breakthrough season will be a cherished memory for our team and for many years to come."
Joining the Blue Angels solely for the tennis tournament this spring will be UC-Santa Cruz, who earned an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament last season. The Banana Slugs defeated their first round opponent, University of Texas-Dallas 5-0 before falling to regional host Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the Second round 5-1.
Agnes Scott College, the reigning five-time GSAC tournament champion, was last year's NCAA Tournament representative from the GSAC, edging Huntingdon 5-4 in the tournament championship. The Scotties were swept by Trinity (Tex.) in the ensuing NCAA First Round.
Founded in 1999 as a group of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III member institutions, the GSAC member schools bear similar academic and athletic interests. The GSAC currently sponsors the women's sports of cross country, soccer, volleyball, basketball, softball and tennis. The participating institutions are located in California (Mills College and UC Santa Cruz), Georgia (Agnes Scott College and Wesleyan College), North Carolina (Salem College), Maine (Maine at Presque Isle), Massachusetts (Pine Manor College), Michigan (Finlandia University), Washington D.C. (Trinity Washington University) and Wisconsin (Mount Mary University).
