Nov. 5, 2009

By: Lindsey Williford, Media Relations Graduate Assistant

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - University of Tennessee senior Caitlin Whoriskey and sophomore Natalie Pluskota cruised through the first round of doubles at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Indoor National Tournament in New Haven, Conn. Whoriskey also advanced through the first round of singles play Thursday afternoon at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center.

The Lady Vol duo was given the No. 1 spot in the nationals and drew Boise State's Lauren Magale and Pichittra Thongbach in Round of 16 action. The match went back-and-forth for the first five games but the UT tandem pulled away at the 5-5 mark to post an 8-5 contest victory. Waiting for Whoriskey and Pluskota in the quarterfinals is the DePaul combo of Anna Redecsi and Selma Salkovic.

After capturing the singles title at the ITA Ohio Valley Regionals, Whoriskey snagged the fifth seed for main draw singles. The East Sandwich, Mass., native drew Nadine Fahoum from Old Dominion in round one. Fahoum led at the 4-3 game mark but couldn't hold on however, as Whoriskey rallied to win the next three games and the first set, 6-4. The second set only got easier for Whoriskey, who only dropped two games for a 6-2 match win. Friday's match will pit the Lady Vol against No. 23 Lenka Broosova from Baylor.

Doubles action will start at 8 a.m. followed by singles at 10:30 a.m. Live stats can be found at on the ITA website at http://www.itatennis.com/Events/ITANationalChampionships/NationalIndoors

THURSDAY RESULTS

DOUBLES (Round of 16)

No. 1 Caitlin Whoriskey/Natalie Pluskota (UT) def. Lauren Magale/Pichittra Thongbach (Boise State) - 8-5

SINGLES (Round of 32)

No. 5 Caitlin Whoriskey (UT) def. Nadine Fahoum (Old Dominion) - 6-4, 6-2

FRIDAY SCHEDULE

DOUBLES (Quarterfinals)

No. 1 Caitlin Whoriskey/Natalie Pluskota (UT) vs. Anna Redecsi/Selma Salkovic (DePaul) - 8 a.m.

SINGLES (Round of 16)

No. 5 Caitlin Whoriskey (UT) vs. Lenka Broosova (Baylor) - 10:30 a.m.