For the first time in program history, Penn women’s tennis is sending a doubles team to the main draw of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-American Championships.
Sol Eskenazi starts competition Tuesday at UCLA with pre-qualifying singles matches. Then on Thursday, Eskenazi and Jules Rodin begin doubles main draw play.
Eskenazi and Rodin are the first Penn players to be invited to the All-American tournament since Connie Hsu in 2010, and the first Quakers doubles pairing to receive an automatic bid in team history.
“I’m very, very excited and I hope that we represent Penn and show them what we have,” said Rodin, who will meet Eskenazi in California on Wednesday afternoon.
Since the Quakers duo is one of just 24 doubles pairs in the country to be selected to the main draw, Rodin and Eskenazi don’t yet know whom they will face Thursday. Teams are playing qualifying rounds this week to join the existing 24.
“[We’ve] definitely [been] trying to focus on doubles more and doing certain types of drills that will help play to our assets, play to our strong suits,” Rodin said.
She added that they are “both good whenever we’re serving and the other one’s at net,” and said this week’s focus has been on capitalizing in those areas.
Eskenazi and Rodin, currently ranked No. 35, will play their doubles matches at the Riviera Tennis Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., which has been the home of the All-American Championships for the past 28 years.
Doubles finalists and consolation champions earn a spot in the National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships in Flushing, N.Y., in November.
SEE ALSO:
Freshman Eskenazi wins Ivy and ITA honors
Penn tennis boasts dynamic duo
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