University
of Florida senior Lauren Embree (Marco Island, Fla.) is the No. 1-ranked
singles player in the country, according to the most recent Intercollegiate
Tennis Association (ITA) rankings released Tuesday.
This
is the first time in her career the Gator standout has sat atop the national
singles rankings, having been ranked as high as No. 4 in the Feb. 12, 2013
listing and in the Fall of 2010 chart.
Embree
joins current Gator teammate Sofie Oyen (Belgium) as Gators who have
achieved the No. 1 singles rankings.
The
first ranking of January 2013 was the first time in her career Oyen sat atop
the national singles rankings.
Embree
is the 11th different Gator since the 1988 season to earn the No. 1 singles
ranking, joining Halle Cioffe, Nicole Arendt, Lisa Raymond, Jill Craybas,
Jessica Lehnhoff, Alexis Gordon, Jennifer Magley, Sofie Oyen, Diana Srebrovic
and Allie Will.
Under
the coaching of Roland Thornqvist, who is in his 12th year in 2012-13 with the
Gators, Embree is the sixth different player to earn the No. 1 singles ranking,
with Lehnhoff, Gordon, Magley, Oyen, Srebrovic and Will all being listed atop
the national chart.
Oyen,
a junior, checks in at No. 11 in this biweekly national ranking, while junior Alexandra
Cercone (Seminole, Fla.) jumped from No. 116 to No. 53 after earning wins
against the nation’s No. 10 and No. 57-ranked players last weekend.
Gator
freshmen Danielle Collins (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Brianna Morgan
(Beverly Hills, Calif.) are No. 76 and No. 114 respectively, while junior Olivia
Janowicz (Palm Bay, Fla.) earned the No. 109 spot in the singles rankings.
Embree
and Oyen also team as the No. 16-ranked doubles pair in the country.
