"We went out with a bang," said senior Whitney Chappell about her and fellow senior Alex Haney's last match in the 2009 NCAA Women's Tennis Tournament in College Station, TX last Thursday.
Haney, who won her first match in the singles tournament 6 - 3, 6 - 4 against USC's Maria Sanchez went on to play Stanford's Hilary Barte in the second round. "I had never played anyone from Stanford," said Haney. "It was a great opportunity match."
Despite defeating Barte 7-5 in the first set, Haney lost the next two sets 6 - 4, 6 - 2, which marked the end of her singles career at Auburn. "I fought very hard, and I gave it my all," said Haney of her match against Barte.
Later in the day, Haney and Chappell played Mari Andersson and Jana Juricova of California in the first round of doubles, but lost the first two sets 7-6, 6-3. "We went into the tournament ranked 12, and they were ranked seventh," said Chappell. "They played a good match and came out on top."
Both Haney and Chappell were pleased with the end of the season. "It was a great opportunity to play in the tournament my senior year," Chappell said. "We put in all our effort."
Other members of the tennis team were also pleased with the results. "They are our only two seniors this year, and it's just awesome that they get to finish their career at the NCAAs," said Jil Hastenrath, a junior on the team. "They really stepped up during the season and made up one of the strongest doubles in the SEC."
Looking back over her four years at Auburn, Haney was content. "It has been the best four years of my life," she said. Chappell was also happy with the way things ended at the tournament. "Shows we are becoming a national contender," she said.
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