Friday, September 20
Auburn, Alabama
Kansas State University
vs
Marliss Gruver Fall Invitational
Wildcats Kick Off Fall Play with Marliss Gruver Fall Invitational
Sep 19, 2019 | Tennis
MANHATTAN, Kansas. – The Kansas State women's tennis team will begin their 2019 fall slate this weekend as the Wildcats travel to Auburn, Alabama to compete in the Marliss Gruver Fall Invitational at the Yarbrough Tennis Center starting Friday, September 20. This will be the first of five fall events for the team.
The Marliss Gruver Invitational is named after former director of operations Marliss Gruver, who passed away in July of 2015 after overseeing the men's and women's tennis programs for over three years.
K-State will be a part of an eight team field which includes: Kansas, Notre Dame, Auburn, Ole Miss, Penn State, Wisconsin and Yale.
Led by second-year head coach Jordan Smith, the Wildcats return eight letter winners from a team that posted a 13-win campaign during the 2019 spring season.
"It's great to begin another fall season with a group who is experienced," said Smith. "Fall is always exciting because we can build on where we left off last spring along with setting a path for new goals this season. Most of our events are more individual so there will be a different element than what we compete in during the spring. The biggest thing I would like to see out of our team is how they problem solve during matches as well as being able to take more chances and continue to make improvements that is sometimes harder to do when we're in team play."
Highlighting these returners are junior Anna Turco, who earned All-Big 12 Second Team honors in singles after leading the team with 14 singles victories during the spring season.
In addition to Turco, the Wildcats return juniors Margot Decker and Maria Linares, who posted 19 combined wins during the 2019 spring season, and sophomore Karine-Marion Job, who collected 14 singles' wins. Decker and Linares were primarily slotted in the No. 1 and 2 spots for 2019 and finished with five wins in Big 12 play. Job clinched her first Big 12 Player of the Week award on February 19 with victories over North Texas and Arizona.
Others returning this Fall include seniors Meghan King and Ines Mesquita and sophomore Ioana Gheorghita. Mesquita, who posted 11 singles' wins, represented Portugal at the World University Games this past summer, while Gheorghita tied Turco for the team lead with five conference singles' wins.
Freshman Lilla Barzo is the lone newcomer in 2019-20 and enters her first year at K-State after a productive tenure in the WTA and ITF professional leagues. The Szeged, Hungary native compiled a 61-30 record for singles competitions as well as a No. 435 ranking on the ITF Tour.
The fall schedule will feature two more invitationals and two International Tennis Association (ITA) events. Both ITA competitions will be in Tulsa, Oklahoma on October 5-11 and Norman, Oklahoma on October 17-22.
The Wildcats will stay put for two more days in Auburn, Alabama before traveling to Dallas, Texas for the SMU Invitational on Friday, September 27.
For the latest on K-State tennis follow @kstatesports and @KStateTEN on Twitter or Kansas State Tennis on Facebook.
The Marliss Gruver Invitational is named after former director of operations Marliss Gruver, who passed away in July of 2015 after overseeing the men's and women's tennis programs for over three years.
K-State will be a part of an eight team field which includes: Kansas, Notre Dame, Auburn, Ole Miss, Penn State, Wisconsin and Yale.
Led by second-year head coach Jordan Smith, the Wildcats return eight letter winners from a team that posted a 13-win campaign during the 2019 spring season.
"It's great to begin another fall season with a group who is experienced," said Smith. "Fall is always exciting because we can build on where we left off last spring along with setting a path for new goals this season. Most of our events are more individual so there will be a different element than what we compete in during the spring. The biggest thing I would like to see out of our team is how they problem solve during matches as well as being able to take more chances and continue to make improvements that is sometimes harder to do when we're in team play."
Highlighting these returners are junior Anna Turco, who earned All-Big 12 Second Team honors in singles after leading the team with 14 singles victories during the spring season.
In addition to Turco, the Wildcats return juniors Margot Decker and Maria Linares, who posted 19 combined wins during the 2019 spring season, and sophomore Karine-Marion Job, who collected 14 singles' wins. Decker and Linares were primarily slotted in the No. 1 and 2 spots for 2019 and finished with five wins in Big 12 play. Job clinched her first Big 12 Player of the Week award on February 19 with victories over North Texas and Arizona.
Others returning this Fall include seniors Meghan King and Ines Mesquita and sophomore Ioana Gheorghita. Mesquita, who posted 11 singles' wins, represented Portugal at the World University Games this past summer, while Gheorghita tied Turco for the team lead with five conference singles' wins.
Freshman Lilla Barzo is the lone newcomer in 2019-20 and enters her first year at K-State after a productive tenure in the WTA and ITF professional leagues. The Szeged, Hungary native compiled a 61-30 record for singles competitions as well as a No. 435 ranking on the ITF Tour.
The fall schedule will feature two more invitationals and two International Tennis Association (ITA) events. Both ITA competitions will be in Tulsa, Oklahoma on October 5-11 and Norman, Oklahoma on October 17-22.
The Wildcats will stay put for two more days in Auburn, Alabama before traveling to Dallas, Texas for the SMU Invitational on Friday, September 27.
For the latest on K-State tennis follow @kstatesports and @KStateTEN on Twitter or Kansas State Tennis on Facebook.
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