THREE CU WOMEN NATIONALLY RANKED IN TENNIS

BOULDER - The collegiate tennis season is less than a week upon the Boulder campus as the spring season begins Jan. 23 for the University of Colorado women. The Buffaloes begin the 2005 season as the No. 70th nationally ranked school among the 75-team ranked field released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA).

Last year the women finished the season 12-10 and as the No. 71st nationally ranked school. Individually, sophomore Lynzee Kever returns to a familiar sight as the No. 76th ranked woman in the 125 field. Kever finished her freshman season among the elite college women as the No. 96th ranked player. She brings a career mark of 19-10 into the spring season.

Kever is not the only CU student-athlete to be ranked among the ITA's preseason best, as senior Kendra Strandemo and junior Jessica Vanderdys are the No. 52nd nationally-ranked doubles team. This is the first time in their careers that Strandemo and Vanderdys are ranked as a doubles team in the national standings. The CU duo went 6-3 last fall.

Colorado begins the spring with three consecutive road matches beginning with Air Force, Sunday, Jan. 23 at 3 p.m.; then the following week at the University of Wisconsin to take on the Badgers (Jan. 30) and Marquette (Jan. 29). CU hosts Washington State, Feb. 3, 6:30 p.m. at the Harvest House, Millennium Hotel.