Texas Tech University Athletics
Kilgo, Dvorak, Talaba Earn All-Big 12 Honors
May 06, 2015 | Women's Tennis
Gabriela Talaba, Kenna Kilgo and Sarah Dvorak were each selected to the All-Big 12 First Team on Wednesday.
May 6, 2015
LUBBOCK, Texas -- When it comes to Lady Raider Tennis, the name Todd Petty has become synonymous with success. Under his direction, Texas Tech has had to rewrite the record book, as his teams have created a list of program firsts.
On Wednesday, Texas Tech added to the list of firsts as Gabriela Talaba was named Co-Big 12 Freshman of the Year, while Talaba, freshman Sarah Dvorak and senior Kenna Kilgo earned All-Big 12 honors, announced league officials.
"More than anything, I think this says a lot about our program and the growth we have made over the last seven years," said Petty. "Kenna, Gabi and Sarah are each deserving of the honors they received. This has been a special team."
Talaba, a freshman from Galati, Romania, joined the program in January as a mid-season enrollee. Her impact was immediately felt, as she started at No. 4 in the lineup and climbed into the No. 2 spot by season's end. Talaba was 16-5 in singles and at one point this season had a 10-match winning streak. She went 2-0 in singles and 2-0 in doubles at the Big 12 Championships in Waco.
Talaba is only the second Lady Raider to be named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year, joining Zana Zlebnik, who won the award in 1998.
Texas Tech also set a school record as three ladies were named to the All-Big 12 first team in singles --Kilgo, Talaba and Dvorak. Kilgo and Talaba also teamed to earn All-Big 12 first team honors in doubles.
Kilgo, who is one of the most decorated players in program history, is only the second player in program history to win a total of five All-Big 12 honors, including four straight All-Big 12 doubles honors. She is the first player in school history to earn three invitations to the NCAA Doubles Championships and the first Lady Raider to lead Texas Tech to four straight appearances in the NCAA Championships. Kilgo, who is ranked No. 70 in singles and No. 33 in doubles with Talaba, has gone 9-9 in singles and 8-5 with Talaba in doubles. For her career, Kilgo has amassed 75 career singles wins and 84 career doubles wins. She ranks fifth in the modern era with 159 career wins and fourth in winning percentage (63.6 percent.)
Dvorak, a freshman from Kurtistown, Hawai'i, is tied for third at Texas Tech in single-season singles victories by a freshman with Samantha Adams (2011). She trails only teammates Kilgo (28 in 2012) and Lynn Kiro (29 in 2014) in singles wins. Dvorak also went 16-15 in doubles, including 10-6 at No. 3 with Katelyn Jackson this season. Since Petty took over the program in 2008, he has landed at least one singles player and one doubles tandem on the All-Big 12 squads in six of seven seasons.
During his era as head coach, Texas Tech has produced more all-conference honors than in the first 31 years of the program combined -- eight in singles and seven in doubles. He also has had 26 players earn Academic All-Big 12 honors.
Texas Tech returns to the court on Friday at 5 p.m. at the McLeod Tennis Center, as the Lady Raiders host the first two rounds of the NCAA Championships. No. 22 LSU will face No. 57 New Mexico at 2 p.m., followed by No. 16 Texas Tech versus New Mexico State at 5 p.m. The winners will meet on Saturday at 3 p.m. Tickets for the NCAA Championships are $5 for adults, $3 for students and children under two years of age are free.
Players Mentioned
