Stanford Women's Tennis: A Championship Legacy

Stanford claimed its 16th NCAA championship and first since a dominant three-year title run ended in 2006. After starting the postseason with three straight 4-0 shutouts, Stanford knocked off No. 1 Baylor and No. 6 Notre Dame before posting a 4-3 win over No. 3 Florida in the championship in Athens, Ga. The Cardinal (26-1, 8-0 Pac-10) also won the conference outright, reclaiming the Pac-10 title it failed to win in 2009, after a 21-year title run. Stanford extended its dual match home winning streak to 164 in a row -- the longest active home winning streak of any intercollegiate sport in NCAA Division I athletics. Meanwhile, Hilary Barte and Lindsay Burdette teamed up to win the NCAA doubles crown, bringing home Stanford's 13th collegiate doubles title and first since 2005.

Stanford, appearing in the title match for the 20th time in the 25-year history of the championship, captured the crown with a 4-1 victory over Miami at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium, extending Stanford's NCAA-record win streak to 86 consecutive overall matches. The Cardinal also extended its home win streak to 107 and postseason streak to 18 on the way to its third consecutive title. Celia Durkin and Amber Liu, ranked No. 22 in the nation, gave the Cardinal a good start, winning the first doubles match with an 8-3 victory over Audrey Banada and Monika Dancevic. But the Stanford doubles point was not secure until top-ranked Alice Barnes and Anne Yelsey rallied from a 7-3 deficit to win 9-7 and earn their 39th victory of the season. In singles, it was a race for who would finish first, as Barnes and Theresa Logar both led in their second sets and were one game away from clinching the Stanford win. Logar finished first, scoring a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Monika Dancevic to secure the Cardinal's 15th NCAA team championship and help Stanford finish the year 30-0.

Stanford captured its third national title in four years, behind the play of senior Erin Burdette. Playing in her home state of Georgia, the three-time All-American struggled earlier in the week -- dropping her matches in the quarters and the semifinals -- but capped her career with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Kendra Strohm to give Stanford a 4-0 victory over Texas in Athens, and the 14th NCAA championship in school history. Stanford (27-0) finished the 2005 campaign with its 12th shutout and ninth undefeated season in school history. During the first five years under Lele Forood, the Cardinal went 29-1 in NCAA Tournament duals, with four team titles and one runner-up finish.

Top-ranked Stanford women's tennis team capped off a perfect season (29-0) by winning its 13th NCAA title by downing UCLA, 4-1, in the championship match in Athens, Ga. The ITA Doubles Team of the Year, Lauren Barnikow and Erin Burdette, clinched the doubles point for the Cardinal with an 8-6 win, before singles went to work, winning three matches. Barnes was first off the court, defeating Jackie Carleton, 6-2, 6-1, at the No. 2 spot. Theresa Logar improved her singles dual record to 27-0 with the 6-4, 6-3 downing of Lauren Fisher at No. 5, before Burdette clinched the title at No. 3 with an overhead smash to earn a 7-6, 6-3 victory over Feriel Esseghir. The Cardinal posted five shutouts en route to the final and outscored its final six opponents, 24-1, during its championship run.

No. 2 Stanford (27-1) captured its second consecutive national championship by notching a 4-1 victory over No. 1 Florida (24-2) at Stanford. The victory was well-earned for the third-seeded Cardinal, which had to sit through a rain delay of three hours and 10 minutes before starting the final. The Cardinal, which won the doubles point in nine of its final 10 matches, did so again in the finals to take a 1-0 lead into singles play. In what would be the start of a memorable career, freshman Erin Burdette took the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6, against Alexis Gordon at No. 4 and then raced out to a 5-2 lead in the second. With Gordon serving at 30-40, Burdette charged the net and angled a backhand volley away from Gordon into the opposite corner for the victory, clinching the 4-1 team triumph in the process.

In her first season, head coach Lele Forood guided Stanford to a 30-0 record for its first undefeated season since going 29-0 in 1990. Stanford was making its third consecutive appearance in the national championship match, following a runner-up finish in 2000 and victory in 1999. Stanford blanked Vanderbilt 4-0 to win the NCAA championship in Stone Mountain, Ga., dropping only one point in its six postseason matches. The Cardinal also picked up its 14th consecutive Pac-10 championship by finishing 9-0 in conference play. Laura Granville won her second consecutive NCAA singles championship, defeating teammate Lauren Kalvaria 6-3, 7-6 (1) in an all-Stanford final.

Stanford came away with a 5-2 championship victory despite playing Florida on the Gators' home court in Gainesville, Fla. On its way to the title, Stanford posted a 29-2 dual record and captured its 12th consecutive Pac-10 championship. The Cardinal, which won its 10th NCAA title under head coach Frank Brennan, went 17-2 against top-25 opponents and ran off an 18-match winning streak to close out the year. Stanford's 7-2 triumph over Arizona on March 5 began the program's NCAA-record dual match home winning streak, which stood at 164 after the 2010 season.

One year after falling to Florida in the national championship match in Gainesville, Fla., Stanford returned the favor on its own court with a victory, defeating the Gators, 5-1, and snapping a five-year national championship "mini drought." Stanford finished 30-1 overall to begin a string of four consecutive 30-win seasons. Lilia Osterloh capped a near-perfect season by capturing the NCAA singles title as a freshman, finishing the year with a 30-3 record to go along with a 14-1 mark in doubles.

Head coach Frank Brennan called this Stanford team, "the greatest of all time." The Cardinal had the top-three ranked women in the NCAA and the country's top two doubles teams. The Cardinal blasted through the NCAA Championships, dropping Texas, 6-1, in the semifinals and Florida, 5-1, in the championship, in Gainesville, Fla. Debbie Graham won both the Pac-10 and NCAA singles titles, while Meredith McGrath and Sandra Birch won the doubles crown. Birch, at No. 1 singles, went 17-5, McGrath 20-1 and Debbie Graham 25-0 to complete the top of the lineup. Stanford finished off the year 29-0, and rode a 65-match win streak into 1991.

Stanford swept both the women's and men's titles for the second consecutive season, with the women winning their fourth in a row. The Cardinal heeded head coach Frank Brennan's cry of "No Dubs," by clinching matches during singles play, preventing the need to even play doubles. Indeed, Stanford clinched 25 of 29 matches in singles alone. The Cardinal began the year as the preseason No. 1, with three of the top players in the country, and swept to a 29-0 record, defeating No. 2 UCLA, 5-0, for the title in Gainesville, Fla. Sophomore Sandra Birch won her first NCAA singles title. The team had so much depth that Lisa Green, Debbie Graham, Kylie Johnson, Tami Whitlinger and Teri Whitlinger combined for a 120-8 dual-meet record.

Stanford went 27-2 while launching a 76-match winning streak and winning its third consecutive NCAA title and fifth in seven years. Coach Frank Brennan said this title "may have been the sweetest. When it came time to play in the NCAA Tournament, we did so without our No. 1 player (injured), but everyone moved up a notch on the ladder and pulled together." The Cardinal ran through the Pac-10 with a 9-1 record, with Lisa Green winning the conference singles title. Once NCAA Championships got underway, No. 1 Tami Whitlinger had to pull out due to a hamstring injury, with Green moving up and Eleni Rossides returning from injury. Stanford reversed an earlier loss to Florida in the regular season, for a 5-2 championship win in Los Angeles. Picture Above: Eleni Rossides, Tami Whitlinger, Lisa Green, Teri Whitlinger, Sandra Birch.

Patty Fendick finished her career with an unprecedented 57-match dual winning streak, leading the Cardinal to its second straight national title, over Georgia in the finals. The No. 1 player since her freshman year led the Cardinal to three NCAA titles and a 140-18 career mark, becoming the first back-to-back singles champion. Fendick finished her career by winning all 40 of her matches in 1987, losing just four sets all year.  The 22-4 Cardinal was paced by All-American Stephanie Savides, Lisa Green and three-time All-American Leigh Anne Eldredge.

Frank Brennan's squad went 21-1 and won its first NCAA title since 1982, joining the men's team as national title winners, the first time ever in NCAA history both programs were crowned champions in the same year. The Cardinal defeated USC for the team championship, 5-4, in Austin, Texas. Junior Patty Fendick went 20-5, earning All-America honors for a third time, while winning the NCAA singles title. She defeated USC's Caroline Kuhlman, the No. 1 seed, in the semifinals after losing twice to her during the regular season. Fendick went onto defeat Gretchen Rush from Trinity (Texas) for the title. Three-time All-American Leigh Anne Eldredge also contributed, as did the third Hagey sister to play for the Cardinal, Cari, who moved from reserve to starter, due to a teammate's injury.

In one of the most dominating seasons in NCAA history, the Cardinal went 26-0 for its second consecutive undefeated season, and rolled past USC, 6-0, in the final in Los Angeles. The Cardinal obliterated its opponents en route to the title match. In 17 of 26 matches, opponents secured just one win or less. Stanford played the regular season without world top-50 and team No. 1 Elise Burgin, because of a back injury. But Burgin played at No. 5 in the postseason, winning the NCAA doubles title and was among five All-Americans on the squad.

With five All-Americans, the Cardinal won its first NCAA women's tennis title, capping a 20-0 dual-meet season. Stanford went from being ranked No. 9 during the season to No. 1, in Provo, Utah, defeating UCLA, 6-3, for the championship. How dominant was the Cardinal? It was 88-17 in singles play and 35-7 in doubles. Alycia Moulton won the NCAA singles title.

Stanford became the first school to win national titles in both the men's and women's championships in the same year. The AIAW championship was also the first of many national women's titles for the Cardinal. Led by All-Americans Susie Hagey, Barbara Jordan, Kathy Jordan and Diane Morrison, the Cardinal beat USC in the final, 5-4, in Salisbury, Md. The Jordan sisters beat two-time defending champions, and teammates, Morrison and Hagey for the doubles crown.