BATON ROUGE — Three-time Singles All-American Megan Falcon of the LSU women’s tennis team finished her college career ranked No. 14 in the nation in the final rankings released Friday by the Campbell/Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
LSU’s top player entered the NCAA Singles Championships this season with a 32-7 overall record and 7-3 Southeastern Conference record. Falcon fell to Laura Vallverdu of Miami in a three-set duel 6-3, 5-7, 0-6 in the round of 16 in the tournament. Her most integral performance of the season came when she defeated Marrit Boonstra of Florida to give the Lady Tigers their first-ever victory over Florida.
For her career, Falcon garnered a sparkling 99-18 record, listing at No. 8 on the LSU all-time wins list. The All-American was unanimously voted First-Team All-SEC all three years of her eligibility. Her three-time All-America honors marked a feat that no other Lady Tiger has been able to accomplish.
“For Megan to finish as one of the top players in the nation all three years in her career says a lot about what she has meant to the program,” said head coach Tony Minnis. “She’s been unbelievable.”
In doubles, Falcon and partner Mykala Hedberg finished as the 19th-ranked tandem in the nation. The duo concluded the 2008-09 season with a 27-10 overall record with eight wins over nationally-ranked opponents.
Hedberg wrapped up her doubles career with an outstanding 87 victories as this makes her one of LSU’s most successful doubles player.
“I’m very proud of Megan and Mykala for what they did in doubles,” said Minnis. “Mykala is one of the best doubles players we’ve ever had.”
Final Regional Rankings were also released by the ITA as 24th-ranked LSU finished No. 3 as a team in the Southwest Region after building a 14-11 overall record and finishing 3-7 in the rugged SEC, which included 10 teams in the top 30.
Individually, Falcon was ranked No. 1, while junior Nicole Kantor was listed at No. 22 and Hedberg at No. 25.
In doubles, Falcon and Hedberg registered second on the list.
Singles Rank Individual Team
1. Mallory Cecil, Duke
2. Maria Mosolova, Northwestern
3. Aurelija Miseviciute, Arkansas
4. Ani Mijacika, Clemson
5. Julia Cohen, Miami (Florida)
6. Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia
7. Marrit Boonstra, Florida
8. Jana Juricova, California
9. Hilary Barte, Stanford
10. Laura Vallverdu, Miami (Florida)
11. Kelcy McKenna, Arizona State
12. Irina Falconi, Georgia Tech
13. Josipa Bek, Clemson
14. Megan Falcon, LSU
15. Fani Chifchieva, Auburn
16. Melanie Gloria, Fresno State
17. Laura Gioia, Furman
18. Yasmin Schnack, UCLA
19. Sanaz Marand, North Carolina
20. Reka Zsilinszka, Duke
Doubles Rank Players Team
1. Renata Kucerkova/Anastasia Petukhova, Fresno State
2. Kelcy Tefft/KristyFrilling, Notre Dame
3. Mari Andersson/Jana Juricova, California
4. Lindsay Burdette/Hilary Barte, Stanford
5. Andrea Remynse/Yasmin Schnack, UCLA
6. Sophie Grabinski/Sanaz Marand, North Carolina
7. Chelsey Gullickson/Nadja Gilchrist, Georgia
8. Caitlin Whoriskey/Natalie Pluskota, Tennessee
9. Lenka Broosova/Csilla Borsanyi, Baylor
10. Amanda Fink/Gabriela Niculescu, Southern California
11. Ani Mijacika/Keri Wong, Clemson
12. Karen Nijssen/Kristi Boxx, Mississippi
13. Georgia Rose/Lauren Lui, Northwestern
14. Marrit Boonstra/Joanna Mather, Florida
15. Whitney Chappell/Alex Haney, Auburn
16. Nanar Airapetian/Anouk Tigu, Arkansas
17. Amanda McDowell/Irina Falconi, Georgia Tech
18. Kelcy McKenna/Micaela Hein, Arizona State
19. Mykala Hedberg/Megan Falcon, LSU
20. Melissa Mang/Amanda Granson, Duke