2016-17 Women's Tennis Roster
Roster
Gabriela Talaba
- Height:
- 5-8
- Class:
- Junior
- High School:
- Liceul cu Program Sportiv Galati
- Hometown:
- Galati, Romania
Was a member of the most decorated class in school history... Helped the Lady Raiders to four straight NCAA tournament berths, four straight Sweet 16 appearances, two Elite Eight appearances and the highest ranking in program history (No. 5).
AWARDS & HONORS
2015 Oklahoma Invitational Boomer Singles Draw
2015 Big 12 Freshman of the Year
2015 All-Big 12 First Team Singles
2016 Big 12 Player of the Week (2x)
2016 All-Big 12 Second Team Singles
2016 Academic All-Big 12 First Team
2017 ITA All-American
2017 Big 12 Player of the Year
2017 All-Big 12 First Team Singles
2017 All-Big 12 First Team Doubles
2017 Big 12 All-Tournament Team (Singles/Doubles)
2017 Academic All-Big 12 First Team
2018 ITA All-American
2018 ITA Texas Region Senior Player of the Year
2018 All-Big 12 First Team Singles
2018 All-Big 12 First Team Doubles
2018 Academic All-Big 12 First Team
SCHOOL RECORDS
No. 1 Singles Wins -- 22
No. 2 Doubles Wins -- 21
SENIOR (2018-19)
Earned the second ITA All-America honor in school history after advancing to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Singles Championship... Was named the ITA Texas Region Senior Player of the year, the first in program history... earned a spot on the All-Big 12 First Team in singles and doubles for the second straight season... was placed on the Academic All Big 12 First Team for the third straight year... Posted a 17-9 overall record and 14-6 in dual matches... Played all dual matches at the No. 1 position for the Lady Raiders... is the first player in school history to defeat the Top-ranked individual as she captured a 6-4, 6-2 win over No. 1 Bianca Turati (Texas) during the Sweet 16... advanced to the NCAA Singles Championships for the second straight season... defeated No. 73 Petra Melounova (Hawaii) in straight sets to advance to the Round of 32... became the first Lady Raider in program history to advance to the Sweet 16 in the singles competition after defeating No. 15 Michaela Gordon (Stanford) in three sets... fell to No. 27 Luisa Stefani (Pepperdine)... Posted a team-leading 22-4 record in doubles play with teammate Felicity Maltby... The 21-3 record at the No. 2 doubles position marked the most single-season wins in program history... the pair reached as high as No. 21 in the Preseason Oracle/ITA Rankings (Sept. 12) and ended the season at No. 67... the duo clinched 10 doubles points for the Lady Raiders including the doubles point against No. 6 Texas in the Sweet 16... the two earned their highest ranked win of the season with a 7-5 victory over No. 6 Kelly Chen and Samantha Harris of Duke during the Elite 8... they also clinched the doubles point in the match against No. 3 Duke. FALL: went 3-1 in the Riviera/ITA All-American Championship main draw... Advanced to the Semifinal and fell to Fernanda Contreras (Vanderbilt) in straight sets... posted a 1-1 record in doubles in the Riviera/ITA All-American Championship qualifying draw... played in the Lubbock 25K and Stillwater 25K events during the fall... lost in the round of 32 of the Stillwater 25K main draw after winning three matches in the qualifying draw to advance to the main draw.
JUNIOR (2016-17)
Became the first ITA All-American in school history... Was named the Big 12 Player of the Year, the first in program history... earned spots on the All-Big 12 First Team in singles and doubles play... Posted a team-leading 25-6 overall record, 22-5 mark in dual matches and went 7-1 against Big 12 opponents... Played the entire season at the No. 1 position for the Lady Raiders... Her 22 wins at the No. 1 position is the most in school history by an individual... Had a 12-6 record when playing nationally ranked opponents... Ended the year at No. 8 in the Oracle/ITA Rankings, the highest ranking of her career and highest ranked individual in program history... Defeated her highest ranked opponent when she took a three-set comeback win over Baylor's Blair Shankle during conference play... Sent the Lady Raiders to the program's first Elite 8 appearance with a three-set match-clincher over Auburn's Alizee Michaud during the Round of 16... Faced the No. 1 singles player, Francesca Di Lorenzo of Ohio State, in the Elite 8 round... Qualified for the NCAA Singles Championships and advanced to the Round of 32 before falling to the NCAA Singles Champion Brienne Minor of Michigan... Posted a team-leading 21-7 overall doubles record with teammate Felicity Maltby... The two went 19-6 in dual matches and a perfect 4-0 in Big 12 play... The duo ranked as high at No. 33 (Feb. 21) in the Oracle/ITA Doubles Rankings and finished the season at No. 59... They earned their highest ranked win of the season with a 7-5 victory over No. 17 Josie Kuhlman and Belinda Woolcock of Florida during the Elite 8 round of the ITA Indoor Nationals. FALL: Rolled through the fall season with a 8-3 singles record and 5-3 doubles record... Advanced to the Round of 16 at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championship where she fell to Pepperdine's Mayar Sherif Ahmed... Advanced to the Semifinals of the ITA Texas Regional Championship where she fell to Texas' Neda Koprcina in a tough three sets... Made it to the quarterfinals in doubles action at the ITA Texas Regional with teammate Alex Valenstein before falling to teammates Sarah Dvorak and Sabrina Federici...Went 2-1 in doubles play with teammate Felicity Maltby at the Kitty Harrison Invitational.
SOPHOMORE (2015-16)
The Lady Raiders’ primary No. 1 singles player who was one of six on the team to capture 20 or more singles victories … Finished the year 23-10 overall, 13-9 in dual matches and 2-3 versus Big 12 opponents … A two-time Big 12 Player of the Week and All-Big 12 Second Team selection … One of just five Texas Tech players to earn All-Big 12 singles honors during first two seasons of career after she earned first team accolades during freshman campaign … Helped the program to the highest final ranking in school history – ending at No. 15 in the Oracle/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) poll … Individually, capped the year No. 78 in the Oracle/ITA ledger … Made the jump from No. 109 in the next-to-last Oracle/ITA poll up to No. 78 … Tied for the squad lead with five victories against nationally ranked opponents … Went 10-6 in the No. 1 singles slot and split her six matches at No. 2 … Played to a 16-15 overall doubles mark, 12-11 record in dual matches and 3-5 Big 12 ledger … Went 11-9 at No. 1 doubles and 1-2 in the No. 2 slot of the order … Named Big 12 Player of the Week for the first time on Jan. 26 after she helped the Lady Raiders make history with their first trip to the ITA National Indoor Championship … Received league accolade after a pair of straight-set victories where she lost a combined six games against opponents from No. 58 Illinois and No. 60 Oregon … Went on a 7-1 stretch from February 19 to April 7 … Picked up Big 12 Player of the Week honors for a second time on March 30 after going 4-0 during the week with two singles and two doubles wins versus No. 57 DePaul and No. 36 Northwestern … Topped No. 81 Erin Larner of No. 36Northwestern 6-4, 6-3 and fought through Yuliya Shupenia of DePaul for a 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 (0) victory … Earned the highest ranked win of the year in the NCAA Tournament Second Round where she defeated No. 36 Georgiana Patrasc of No. 21 Mississippi State in three sets, 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-2 … Win versus Pastrasc was the match-clinching point in a 4-2 team win which pushed the Lady Raiders to the NCAA Round of 16 for the second straight season … Pushed Texas Tech to the winning edge versus No. 35 TCU in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals with a 6-2, 6-2 victory versus Marie Norris that gave the Lady Raiders a 3-1 advantage … In doubles, much like singles, bounced back from a 1-4 start to go on a 5-1 stretch with Alex Valenstein at the No. 1 position … Paired with Valenstein to clinch doubles points against DePaul and Northwestern … Picked up biggest ranked victory of the year against No. 15 Breaunna Addison and Danielle Wagland of Texas with a 6-3 triumph on April 29 in the Big 12 Tournament … Cinched the doubles point versus No. 21 Mississippi State in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 with a 6-3 victory against No. 30 Madison Harrison and Kristina Vozniak … Won other doubles match in NCAA Tournament action and topped Boston’s Sabrina Faybyshev and Johanna Hyoty, 6-1 in the opening round … FALL: Breezed through the early portion of the fall where she started 7-0 in singles before finishing 7-2 ... In doubles, posted a 2-2 mark ... Ranked No. 103 in the Oracle/ITA singles ledger for the fall ... Captured the Oklahoma Invitational Boomer Singles Draw title with four straight victories, including a 6-2, 7-6 (8) win against No. 125 Gabriela Porubin of Wichita State in the final ... Tallied wins in all three pre-qualifying matches at the ITA All-American Championship to move into the qualifying round ... Lost both qualifying matches to end the fall campaign ... At the Oklahoma Invitational, went 1-2 in doubles with Sabrina Federici ... Dropped lone decision with Federici at the Riviera ITA All-America Championships ... Tallied a win in the consolation bracket of the Oklahoma Invitational with Katelyn Jackson.
FRESHMAN (2014-15)
Joined the team in mid-January as a freshman enrollee and earned All-Big 12 First-Team honors ... Posted an impressive 18-5 singles record which included a 17-3 ledger in dual matches and 5-3 mark in Big 12 action ... Tallied a 14-8 mark in doubles with Hortense Boscher and Kenna Kilgo ... Selected with Kilgo as an alternate for the 2015 NCAA Doubles Championships ... Went 8-6 with Kilgo and turned in an 8-5 mark at the No. 1 slot ... Played all Big 12 matches with Kilgo at No. 1 and finished 5-3 ... Paired with Boscer to go 6-2 with a 5-1 mark at the No. 3 position ... In singles, began the dual match season with a 10-match winning streak (Jan. 31--March 15) ... Started the campaign primarily at the No. 4 slot before moving up to the No. 2 position ... Finished the year 7-3 at No. 2 spot, 2-0 at No. 3 and 8-0 at No. 4 ... Posted a 3-2 record against nationally ranked foes and captured final four decisions of the campaign ... Won both NCAA Team Championship matches from the No. 2 spot highlighted by a 6-3, 6-4 upset of No. 68 Skyler Kuykendall of No. 22 LSU ... Gave the Lady Raiders their first lead at 2-1 in a 4-1 victory against No. 31 Oklahoma with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph against Simran Sethi ... Evened the match against No. 11 Oklahoma State at 1-1 with a 6-0, 6-2 win versus Kelsey Laurente ... Lady Raiders went on to claim a 4-3 upset of the Cowgirls ... In the Big 12 semifinals, helped the Lady Raiders to another upset of the No. 11 Cowgirls with a 6-1, 6-2 triumph against No. 124 Katarina Adamovic ... In doubles, posted a three-match winning streak with Kilgo against No. 36 Texas, No. 31 Oklahoma and No. 11 Oklahoma State sparked by a 6-2 upset of the No. 9 pair of Viktoriya Lushkova and Kelsey Laurente of the Cowgirls ... Played in the No. 1 doubles spot beginning Feb. 12 until the end of the season.
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH
Talaba was one of the top-ranked junior players growing up in Romania ... ranked third in Romania in 2013 ... ranked No. 206 in the world as a junior ... ended 2014 ranked No. 529 in the world by the WTA ... improved her world ranking in singles from 1,005 in January, 2014, to 549 in December, 2014 ... in doubles, climbed from from No. 1,744 to No. 551 ... Talaba won the Romanian Senior Championships singles title in 2014 at Romanian Tennis Center, after topping close friend and club-mate Oana Simon ... ironically, Talaba teamed with Simon to win the 2011 Romanian Junior Championships doubles title ... also won the 2011 Wilson-Tivoli Trophy Timisoara after earning a wildcard into the event. Talaba ran the table, dropping Jelena Dzinic (No. 223), Anna Veleva (No. 414), Julia Grabher (No. 57), Lilla Barzo (No. 70) and Barbara Kotelesova (No. 134) en route to the title ... teamed with Ana Bianca Mihala to win the 2011 ITF/CAT Egypt Junior Tournament ... semifinalist in singles and a champion in doubles at the 2013 Trofeul D. Sturda International ITF Juniors Tournament ... since turning 18, Talaba advanced to the semifinals on the ITF circuit 12 times. She was 31-17 in singles and 24-17 in doubles on the ITF Circuit during the 2014 calendar year, participating in 17 events.
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vs. Ranked
|
||||||||||||
|
SINGLES
|
Overall
|
Dual
|
Tour
|
Big 12
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
Nat'l
|
Reg'l
|
| 2017-18 | 17-9 | 14-6 | 3-3 | 4-4 | 14-6 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 5-8 | 0-0 |
| 2016-17 | 25-6 | 22-5 | 3-2 | 7-1 | 22-5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 13-7 | 0-0 |
|
2015-16
|
23-10
|
13-9
|
10-1
|
2-3
|
10-6
|
3-3
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
5-7
|
0-0
|
|
2014-15
|
18-5
|
17-3
|
1-2
|
5-3
|
--
|
7-3
|
2-0
|
8-0
|
--
|
--
|
3-2
|
3-3
|
|
CAREER
|
83-30
|
66-23
|
17-8
|
18-11
|
46-17
|
10-6
|
2-0
|
8-0
|
--
|
--
|
26-24
|
3-3
|
|
vs. Ranked
|
|||||||||
|
DOUBLES
|
Overall
|
Dual
|
Tour
|
Big 12
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
Nat'l
|
Reg'l
|
| 2017-18 | 23-4 | 21-3 | 2-1 | 7-0 | -- | 21-3 | -- | 1-2 | 0-0 |
| 2016-17 | 21-7 | 19-6 | 2-1 | 4-0 | -- | 15-4 | 4-2 | 3-0 | 0-0 |
|
2015-16
|
16-15
|
12-11
|
4-4
|
3-5
|
11-9
|
1-2
|
--
|
3-6
|
0-0
|
|
2014-15
|
14-8
|
13-6
|
1-2
|
5-3
|
8-5
|
--
|
5-1
|
2-5
|
2-5
|
|
CAREER
|
74-34
|
65-26
|
9-8
|
19-8
|
19-14
|
37-9
|
9-3
|
9-13
|
2-5
|
