Washington and Lee University
The Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) released its preseason men's and women's tennis coaches polls on Tuesday afternoon and both Washington and Lee squads were picked to defend their conference titles.
The W&L women received all 11 first-place votes and 121 points to top the poll. They were followed by Bridgewater (103), Hollins (96), Virginia Wesleyan (94), Roanoke (65), Emory & Henry (58), Sweet Briar (51), Randolph-Macon (49), Guilford (41), Lynchburg (35) and Randolph (13).
The Generals also topped the men's poll with all 10 first-place votes and 100 points. Hampden-Sydney was second with 90 points, followed by Roanoke (74), Bridgewater (73), Guilford (58), Emory & Henry (49), Virginia Wesleyan (37), Lynchburg (32), Randolph-Macon (27) and Randolph (10).
The Washington and Lee women enter the 2009 spring season ranked second in Division III after posting a 28-1 overall record (10-0 ODAC), winning their sixth-consecutive league title and finishing as the NCAA Runner-up last season. The Generals return several top players this spring, including four-time All-American Katie Tabb (Minneapolis, Minn./Edina). A senior captain, Tabb posted a 22-7 singles record and a 28-3 doubles mark last season en route to earning ODAC Player of the Year honors.
The W&L men are ranked 19th in Division III entering the spring season. The Generals notched an 18-5 overall record and a perfect 9-0 mark in the conference last season as they won their 13th-straight conference championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Among the returnees is senior captain Jamie McCardell (Cornwall, Vt./Episcopal), who posted a 20-8 singles record and an 11-10 doubles ledger last season.
The women opened their spring campaign with a 6-3 loss to Division I Radford on Friday afternoon, while the men opened with a 9-0 victory over Emory & Henry on Sunday.
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