Agarycheva Selected for NCAA Championships in Singles, Plus Doubles with Palmer

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE -- Willamette University senior Natalia Agarycheva (Vancouver, WA/Prairie HS/U. of Northern Colorado) has been selected to compete at the 2011 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships in singles and will join Bearcat junior Shannon Palmer (Salem, OR/Sprague HS) at the NCAA Championships in doubles.

A total of 32 women's tennis players from throughout the country were selected for the singles bracket. Sixteen doubles teams were chosen for the doubles bracket.

Eight singles players and four doubles teams were included from each of the four NCAA regions. The NCAA singles and doubles championships will be held on May 27-29 in Claremont, Calif.

"They had a very successful season," Willamette Head Coach Becky Roberts said regarding Agarycheva and Palmer. "They worked really hard to earn their accomplishments. This is a reward for their efforts."

Agarycheva will be competing at the NCAA Championships for the second year in a row. In 2010, she became the first Willamette women's tennis player to participate in the NCAA Championships in singles. This year, Agarycheva and Palmer will be the first pair of WU athletes to compete in doubles.

During the 2010-11 season, Agarycheva has earned a 20-3 overall record in singles. She is 14-2 during the spring, with all of her matches at #1 singles. She has a career singles record of 45-8 for the Bearcats, including a 25-5 record in 2009-10. She is ranked #4 in the West Region in singles this year, after earning a #5 ranking last season.

Agarycheva and Palmer have achieved a 14-2 mark this spring while playing #1 doubles. They did not compete during the fall semester because Palmer was on a study abroad trip to Japan.

Last year, Agarycheva and Palmer were 10-5 in doubles and were ranked #7 in the West Region. This year, they are ranked #3 in the West Region.

The singles and doubles brackets at the NCAA Championships will be filled out at the conclusion of the team championship, which will be held in Claremont on May 25-26. Alternates will be added if any individuals or teams are injured or otherwise scratched from the tournament.

Julia Browne from Tufts University (Mass.) is the defending NCAA Division III singles champion. She defeated Agarycheva in the first round of the NCAA Championships last year on her way to the title. Kendra Higgins and Chrissy Hu from the University of Chicago (Ill.) are back to defend their NCAA doubles championship from last spring.