Sophomore Resende earns first team singles preseason honors
Sophomore Ana Carla Resende earned Preseason All-Conference First Team Singles honors ahead of the 2020 season, as announced by the South Atlantic Conference Thursday.
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Sophomore Ana Carla Resende earned Preseason All-Conference First Team Singles honors ahead of the 2020 season, as announced by the South Atlantic Conference Thursday.
"She'll have a lot of pressure on her as a sophomore, (especially) after what she did last year," head coach Jim Frederick said. "She's going to have to handle that. I anticipate that she'll put some pressure on herself and players (playing against her) will now love to beat her knowing where she is, who she is. It will be very challenging for her this year and, hopefully, she'll rise to the challenge.
"I think she can and I think she will, but she has to do it."
Resende's 13-4 record in her freshman campaign all came at the No. 1 singles position, including a 6-2 mark in SAC play. She had the only winning record individually among the team in singles action, respectively.
This is the second first-team honor for Resende, who ended her freshman campaign as a member of the top six in the SAC. She also earned Freshman of the Year honors to end the 2019 season, racking up the most wins as a freshman singles player among all female athletes in the SAC.
Lenoir-Rhyne's Gemma Southwick joins Resende as the only underclassman to make the first team. Seniors Alisa Rudenko (Wingate) and Sophie Hirsch (Catawba) join juniors Yana Fleyer and Sasha Davidzenka (Queens) to round out the group of six members to receive the accolade.
A player that possesses high control and ability to wear her opponent down with high-quality rallying, Resende has continued to grow in her power game over the offseason. Frederick knows that while she may never have the measurables of a power swinger, she can provide her competition with a greater challenge as her game develops to incorporate more control of the point.
"She's the kind of player that you would say is a steady player, she doesn't miss much," Frederick said. "She's going to have to really play up in the court more and not get pushed back."
Resende and her team will open the season Jan. 31 against Martin Methodist at 6 p.m. at the Knoxville Racquet Club.
2020 SAC Women's Tennis Preseason All-Conference
First Team Doubles
Elisa Aguirre / Judit Gonzalez Agud, Newberry
Sasha Davidzenka / Yana Fleyer, Queens
Gemma Southwick / Diana Babinets, Lenoir-Rhyne
Second Team Doubles
Mirna Curcic/Anna Greer, Anderson
Isabel Fornies/Caity Klaassen, Queens
Julia Lopez / Africa Mota, Tusculum
First Team Singles
Alisa Rudenko, Wingate
Sophie Hirsch, Catawba
Yana Fleyer, Queens
Ana Carla Resende, Carson-Newman
Sasha Davidzenka, Queens
Gemma Southwick, Lenoir-Rhyne
Second Team Singles
Julia Lopez, Tusculum
Liza Akimenko, UVa-Wise
Viktorija Veselinova, Queens
Chyi Lee, Wingate
Camilla Ciaccia, Wingate
Isabel Fornies, Queens
