ATHENS-----The Georgia doubles tandem of Lilly Kimbell and Maho Kowase was named to the All-Tournament team for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships.
Voters included the head coaches from the 16 participating teams, and this is the fifth year the ITA has announced an All-Tournament team. UCLA won this year’s event over Duke at the Boar’s Heads Sports Club in Virginia. Georgia advanced to the quarterfinals.
The Kimbell/Kowase team is 8-2 this year including a pair of wins during the ITA National Team Indoor Championships. In Georgia’s win over No. 14 Texas, the sophomore duo posted an 8-4 win over Krista Damico and Elizabeth Begley. Also, they recorded an 8-3 win over Sam Critser and Michelle Sulahian in the team’s victory over No. 10 Michigan. They did not get to finish their match against No. 7 California after the Bears clinched the doubles point by winning at the No. 1 and 2 spots in the lineup. Overall, the Kimbell/Kowase team is 6-0 in dual matches.
In the latest ITA Team rankings, Georgia (8-1) remained in the No. 6 spot. The Bulldogs will return to action Friday at 2:30 p.m. when they play host to No. 55 Memphis (6-1). On Sunday, the Bulldogs welcome No. 17 Clemson (7-2) to town. The Tigers face South Carolina in Columbia on Wednesday.
There are five Bulldogs in the latest ITA singles rankings and one doubles team. Senior Chelsey Gullickson leads the group at No. 9 followed by Kowase (No. 44), freshman Lauren Herring (No. 60), sophomore Kate Fuller (No. 80) and senior Nadja Gilchrist (No. 125). The Gullickson/Gilchrist duo checks in at No. 9 with a 13-4 record. Gullickson and Herring own a team-best 20-5 singles record while the Herring/Fuller team boasts a 20-8 record.