May 1, 2002

LAS VEGAS - The 2002 Mountain West Conference champion UNLV women improved one spot to No. 18 in the nation in the Omni Hotels Collegiate Tennis Rankings, which were released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Wednesday.

This is the school-record-setting seventh straight week UNLV has placed in the nation's top 20. The Lady Rebels, who stood at No. 56 in the preseason poll, finished the regular season with a school-record mark of 20-3.

UNLV, which was 11-3 vs. ranked teams this season, went 9-1 in the Mountain West Conference, including last weekend's 4-2 victory over No. 26 San Diego State in league final. Individually, both the top two Lady Rebels saw their rankings dip. Junior Paulina Janus (20-11) fell 10 spots to 102nd while MWC Freshman of the Year Gyorgyi Zsiros (28-7) dropped one spot to 97th despite extending her 17-match winning streak.

The Lady Rebels, who won an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship, will find out where they will play their first-second round regional on Thursday.

On the men's side, the Rebels (10-12) fell three spots to No. 56 after taking fifth place in the six-team MWC tournament.

Individually, senior Thomas Schneiter (22-7) rose three places to No. 62. While the Rebels have ended their season, Schneiter awaits a bid to the NCAA Singles Championship in College Station, Texas, later this month.