The finishing touches were put on a historical season for the Nova Southeastern women's tennis team Friday, as the Sharks were selected No. 2 in the final Division II Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Team Rankings – marking the highest final ranking in program history.
"It's great to see our team recognized for its entire body of work," said three-time Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year, Doug Neagle. "We played a very tough schedule, so it's nice for these ladies to be recognized with a final No. 2 national ranking. They set their goals high and put in the work to achieve these goals. Many people want the awards and accolades, but don't want to put in the work. This team put in the work and fought for everything they could. More importantly, they loved and supported each other all year. Without this chemistry, our season doesn't go as well as it did. I'm so happy for this group and will miss our seniors!"
This past spring, the Sharks ripped off a record of 25-4, setting a new single-season, program record for wins – 12 of them coming against Top-25 competition. Their 25th victory propelled them into the Final Four for the very first time, as the program had previously never advanced past regional action. NSU began the season at No. 4 in the polls before spending its first-ever stint at No. 1 in the month of March.
Individually, NSU was led throughout the year by both Natalie Espinal and SSC Athlete of the Year, Julie Razafindranaly, who checked in at No. 2 and No. 4 in the final singles rankings. Nika Kozar joined the group at No. 13, while Second Team All-SSC performer Karolina Snita wound up at No. 35.
Espinal, along with Chantal Nosievici, grabbed the No. 3 spot in doubles, followed by Kozar and Zala Dovnik at No. 21 and Dovnik and Razafindranaly at No. 48.
To view the complete rankings, click here.
To stay up-to-date with the Sharks throughout the offseason, visit NSUSharks.com or follow them on Instagram and Twitter at @NSU_WTennis.
Original source can be found here.
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