University of Delaware Athletics
Abidullina, Askarova Become First Blue Hens to Qualify for NCAA Tournament
5/4/2023 9:56:00 AM | Women's Tennis
INDIANAPOLIS – Delaware's Adel-Byanu Abidullina and Eliza Askarova have automatically qualified for the NCAA Tournament as one of 32 doubles tandems, the NCAA announced Tuesday. The duo becomes the first singles or doubles player in program history to reach the postseason and first doubles pair in the CAA since 2015.
"This is very exciting for Eliza and Adel to compete for a national championship," Director of Tennis Pablo Montana said. "They have been consistent all year with their performances and have been improving with each match. They have been working hard on their doubles these past few weeks and I know they are looking forward to putting their skills to the test."
The duo posted a program best 29-2 record to sit atop the record book for most wins in a season. Askarova would tally 32 wins overall in doubles competition to set the individual season record.
The Blue Hens' top pairing reached as high as third in the nation in the ITA rankings, finishing the season at 35th overall, despite not having lost another match since sitting inside the top 10.
Automatic qualification into the Division I doubles championship is awarded to any conference with one or more eligible doubles teams ranked in the ITA Top 60 for eligible/entered doubles teams. All doubles teams must have started a minimum of 10 doubles matches, with a minimum of four matches in the spring, to be selected as an automatic qualifier or an at-large selection.
All matches shall be the best-of-three sets. No-ad scoring and a seven-point tiebreaker (first to seven points, must win by two points) at six-games-all will be used for all matches. In doubles, a 10-point match tiebreaker will be played in lieu of a third set.
The singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 22-27 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida, after the conclusion of the team championship, which runs from May 17-20. This year's event will be conducted jointly with the NCAA Divisions II and III Men's and Women's Tennis Championships and hosted by the University of Central Florida and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.
"This is very exciting for Eliza and Adel to compete for a national championship," Director of Tennis Pablo Montana said. "They have been consistent all year with their performances and have been improving with each match. They have been working hard on their doubles these past few weeks and I know they are looking forward to putting their skills to the test."
The duo posted a program best 29-2 record to sit atop the record book for most wins in a season. Askarova would tally 32 wins overall in doubles competition to set the individual season record.
The Blue Hens' top pairing reached as high as third in the nation in the ITA rankings, finishing the season at 35th overall, despite not having lost another match since sitting inside the top 10.
Automatic qualification into the Division I doubles championship is awarded to any conference with one or more eligible doubles teams ranked in the ITA Top 60 for eligible/entered doubles teams. All doubles teams must have started a minimum of 10 doubles matches, with a minimum of four matches in the spring, to be selected as an automatic qualifier or an at-large selection.
All matches shall be the best-of-three sets. No-ad scoring and a seven-point tiebreaker (first to seven points, must win by two points) at six-games-all will be used for all matches. In doubles, a 10-point match tiebreaker will be played in lieu of a third set.
The singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 22-27 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida, after the conclusion of the team championship, which runs from May 17-20. This year's event will be conducted jointly with the NCAA Divisions II and III Men's and Women's Tennis Championships and hosted by the University of Central Florida and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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