Sports

2008 USTA National Campus Championship results

Billie Jean King presents championship awards in Cary, North Carolina

Champions: The University of Texas at Austin.

Championship staff. Front row, l-r: Linda Milan, USTA; Robin Jones, USTA; Michelle Wood, USTA; Jodi Manning, USTA; Billie Jean King, World Team Tennis; Elaine Wingfield, World Team Tennis. Back row, l-r: Valerie McCutchan, NIRSA National Center; Stephanie Thompson, Texas State University-San Marcos; Glenn Arrington, USTA; Justin Street, USTA. Not pictured are Nicole Piscitelli and Kim Clark, both from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

The University of Texas at Austin captured the 2008 championship title, beating the University of California, Berkeley at the 2008 USTA National Campus Championship, part of the NIRSA National Campus Championship Series. This 64-team national championship, the culmination of the USTA Tennis On Campus season, took place April 17-19 at the Cary Tennis Park in Cary, North Carolina.

Tennis legend Billie Jean King was on hand throughout the 2008 USTA Campus Championship as an honorary guest to support and share her tennis insights with participating teams. Having King present the Championship awards further enhanced both the players’ and spectators’ experiences. An advocate for social change and equality, King brought abundant inspiration, energy and encouragement to the Championship. USTA President Jane Brown Grimes was also onsite April 17-18 to watch the competition.

The fifth time was a charm for the Longhorns: Texas has advanced to the championship match five times (’00, ’01, ’02, ’05 and ’08), but hadn’t clinched the title until this year. This was the first finals appearance for Cal since the tournament began. This event, which dates back to 2000, offers a national championship for non-varsity club and intramural tennis programs.

The championship opened on April 17 with 16, 4-team pools, with teams advancing to bracket play on the following two days. The first-place teams from each of the 16 pools advance to one bracket (that determines the overall champion), the second-place teams from the pools advance to another bracket, the third-place teams advance to a third bracket, and the fourth-place teams to a fourth bracket. Other winners included:

• Silver Division: University of Virginia defeated University of Michigan
• Bronze Division: University of Colorado defeated Western Washington University
• Copper Division: Virginia Tech defeated University of Oklahoma

The tournament is administered in partnership by the United States Tennis Association (USTA), NIRSA, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) and World TeamTennis (WTT). This partnership has resulted with a championship running at full participation capacity for a number of years. In addition, the partnership has facilitated a growing interest in club and intramural tennis on college campuses throughout the country.

As part of the Tennis On Campus season, all 17 USTA Sections hold Championships, with the winner and second place finisher of each receiving an automatic bid to the National USTA Campus Championship. The remaining field is filled through an at-large selection process.

The inaugural USTA National Campus Championship, held in 2000, featured a total of 10 teams. Participation records have been set at each of the seven ensuing championships. Past championships have been held in Austin, Texas; Daytona Beach, Florida; San Diego, California, and Cary, North Carolina.

NIRSA would like to give a huge thanks to Kim Clark, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, who was the director of competition and worked on the event throughout the year. Stephanie Thompson, Texas State University-San Marcos, and Nicole Piscitelli, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, also put in many hours over the tournament. Thank you!