DALLAS -- Five members of The University of Texas women's tennis team have earned 2005 Academic All-Big 12 honors, the conference announced on Tuesday, April 26. Juniors Katie Ruckert (Vienna, Va.) and Kendra Strohm (Tucson, Ariz.) and sophomore Petra Dizdar (Split, Croatia) were named to the First Team, while juniors Kelly Baritot (Allison Park, Pa.) and Mia Marovic (Split, Croatia) earned Second Team honors.
Nominated by each institution's director of student-athlete support services and media relations offices, the women's tennis academic all-league squad consisted of 33 first team members combined with seven on the second team.
First team members include those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, and the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA. To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters and must have participated in 60 percent of her team's scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence.
This is the second consecutive year Ruckert, Strohm and Baritot have received Academic All-Big 12 accolades.
Ruckert, a government major, has recorded a 16-5 mark in singles to date and was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on April 25. She has also teamed with Strohm to hold down the No. 1 doubles position with a 12-9 dual record.
Strohm is a kinesiology major, who is ranked 80th nationally in singles with an 11-10 dual record. She is also recognized with teammate Ruckert as the No. 31 doubles tandem in the nation.
A public relations major, Dizdar has played primarily at the top of the singles lineup and holds a 13-8 record on the dual season. She was twice recognized as the Big 12 Player of the Week this season for her performance in singles as well as doubles with teammate Marovic. This spring, she was also named the Longhorns' Academic MVP.
Baritot is a corporate communication major who has seen limited time in the singles lineup but who has been instrumental in doubles play. She has teamed with freshman Courtney Zauft (San Antonio, Texas) for a 10-5 dual record at the No. 3 position.
Majoring in economics, Marovic began the season at the fifth spot in the singles lineup and has since moved up to the second spot. She is ranked 89th nationally in singles with a 17-3 dual record and has teamed with Dizdar to hold down the No. 2 doubles position with a 12-7 record.
These student-athletes, along with the rest of the 10th-ranked Texas women's tennis team, are the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Big 12 Women's Tennis Championships to be held at Penick-Allison Tennis Center in Austin, Texas. The tournament runs Thursday-Sunday, April 28-May 1. The Longhorns received a first-round bye and will face the winner of the No. 7 seed Oklahoma/No. 10 seed Kansas State match on Friday, April 29 at 3 p.m. Central.
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