WALTHAM, Mass. — Two Brandeis University tennis players have been selected to participate in the 2014 NCAA Division III Individual Tennis tournament. Junior Carley Cooke of San Diego, California, has earned her third career bid for the women, while rookie Brian Granoff of Miami, Florida, will make his first appearance for the men.
Cooke, who was named second-team All-University Athletic Association (UAA) at first singles, posted a 14-5 record this season, and is a perfect 8-0 lifetime in UAA play. She is Brandeis's third player selected to the NCAA championships and the first to earn multiple berths. Cooke is a three-time All-American, having earned singles honors as a freshman and sophomore and doubles accolades along with partner Faith Broderick '13 last year.
Cooke owns a 41-18 career record at Brandeis, fifth on the career list, while her .695 winning percentage is highest in school history among players with 30 wins. She is in search of her first NCAA tournament victory, having dropped a first-round singles match in 2012 and doubles in 2013. Her 2013 singles All-America honor came based on her end-of-season ranking despite just missing selection to the Division III tournament.
"I'm very proud that Carley has earned the opportunity to represent Brandeis at the NCAA's," said Judges' ninth-year head coach Ben Lamanna. "This being her 3rd NCAA tournament, we're hoping her experience and playing close to home will be a real asset for her."
Granoff is Brandeis's first male selected to the NCAAs in 20 years, since Ryan Rothenberg '95 was selected as a junior. Granoff posted a 14-6 overall record for the Judges this season, including 8-2 since taking over the No. 1 spot on the team. He defeated another NCAA entrant, Deepak Sabada of Chicago, in that span. His two losses came to a Division I opponent and against another entrant, Ross Putterman of second-ranked Washington University, in a third set that was decided, 11-9, in a super tiebreaker.
"Brian and his rookie teammates have been huge additions to this program, and I'm very happy that this year is continuing," Lamanna said. "Brian fights so hard for every point and every game. That approach is why he improved throughout the whole season."
The 2014 NCAA Division III Individual Tennis Championships will be held May 22-24 at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center in Claremont, California. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges will be the host. Click here to follow the championships.