North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State Women’s Tennis Checks in at No. 8 in Preseason National Rankings
1/5/2022 11:04:00 AM | Women's Tennis
TEMPE, Ariz. – NC State women's tennis will start its dual match campaign ranked in the national top 10 for the third season in a row as it was ranked No. 8 in the ITA Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll on Wednesday.
That number ties as the best preseason ranking for the program, as it was also ranked eighth to start the 2020 and 2021 campaigns. NC State has now been featured in the national top 15 of every rankings release since Feb. 26, 2019.
The Wolfpack is coming off its best season in program history during which it reached the 2021 NCAA Final Four and finished with its best-ever final national ranking of No. 6 at the conclusion of team play. NC State compiled a 20-6 record last season, with those victories ranking as the second-most in a single season in team history. Half of the team's wins were against nationally-ranked opponents, and four of those were versus top-10 squads. A program-best three players were named All-ACC honorees last season, and four Pack players earned All-America citations at the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, also a program best.
The Wolfpack returns four players from that 2020-21 team, including ITA All-America honorees Jaeda Daniel and Alana Smith. Sophomore standouts Amelia Rajecki and Abigail Rencheli are also back with the squad, and the program welcomes a solid group of freshmen and transfers to round out its roster for the year.
In addition to the team ranking, NC State has three players ranked in the national top 25 in singles following fall play. Daniel leads the way with a personal-best ranking of No. 8, Smith checked in at No. 24 and Rencheli also earned the highest singles ranking of her career at No. 25. NC State's three players in the top 25 ranks second in the nation. Daniel and Smith were also ranked in doubles as they were tabbed the nation's No. 21 duo.
NC State hits the road for a weekend at the Miami Invitational Jan. 15-17 before returning home to host No. 23 Princeton on Jan. 22 and No. 10 Ohio State on Jan. 23.
The Pack's full match 2022 schedule is posted on GoPack.com, and more match times will be added as soon as possible. Home matches at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center are free to attend, and fans will be required to wear masks for any matches played indoors as noted in the University's Community Standards.
#GoPack | @PackWTennis
Players Mentioned
