Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
NCAA Individual Tournament
Carlotti Reaches Round of 16 at NCAA Singles Tournament
5/21/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
May 21, 2002
FRESNO, Calif. - Chloe Carlotti won both of her matches Tuesday at the NCAA Singles Tournament, and in so doing became the first freshman in program history to achieve All-America status.
Currently ranked No. 41 in the nation, Carlotti opened the day at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium at Stanford by knocking off Marion Kruse of Middle Tennessee State 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-2 in the first round. She then took on Katarina Markovski of South Carolina, who defeated the tournament's No. 2-seed Kelly McCain in a first round match. Carlotti made short work of Markovski, winning 6-4, 6-4 to become the Bulldogs' fourth ever singles All-American.
"This is a tremendous honor for Chloe, and she deserves it," head coach Kevin Epley said. "She has worked hard this year and has improved with every match. The way she is playing right now, she can continue to do damage in this tournament."
Carlotti is now 33-16 on the season and leads the team in victories. She will play 9-16 seed Vilmarie Castellvi of Tennessee on Wednesday at 9 a.m. Castellvi has lost only 10 games in her first two matches.
Also seeing action Tuesday was 42nd-ranked Kim Niggemeyer. The senior was victorious in her first round match by scores of 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 over Delia Causevic of Maryland.
Unfortunately for Niggemeyer, she lost her second round match to top-seeded Bea Bielik of Wake Forest 6-3, 6-2. It was an eerie reminder for Niggemeyer, who lost to Bielik in the second round of the 2000 NCAA Singles Tournament at Pepperdine. The Berlin, Germany, native finishes her singles career at Fresno State with 94 wins, fourth most in program history.
Niggemeyer's season is not over yet, however. She will participate in the NCAA Doubles Tournament with partner Simone Jardim. The duo plays Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. against Texas A&M's Ashley Hedberg and Jessica Roland.
Tuesday's NCAA Singles Action
- Chloe Carlotti
First Round: def. Marion Kruse (Middle Tennessee State), 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-2
Second Round: def. Katarina Markovski (South Carolina), 6-4, 6-4
- Kim Niggemeyer
First Round: def. Delia Causevic (Maryland), 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
Second Round: lost (1) Bea Bielik (Wake Forest), 6-3, 6-2
