Jan. 10, 2006

LAS VEGAS - UNLV super sophomore Elena Gantcheva has become only the second Lady Rebel to ever break the top 10 of the Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings, which were released on Tuesday.

Gantcheva, who compiled a 15-4 record during fall tournament play, improved from 24th in the preseason to No. 8 in what were the first rankings released since September.

The native of Sofia, Bulgaria, won the UNLV Fall Invitational title in September, the consolation draw of the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Tennis Championships in October and reached the final of the ITA West Regional later that month. Along the way, Gantcheva went 12-3 vs. ranked players, including shocking the nation's preseason No. 1, Jennifer Magley of Florida in straight sets on Oct. 9.

She joins only three-time All-American Marianne Vallin as a top-10 player for the Lady Rebels. Vallin, who fought her way into the national top 10 every year from 1995-97, peaked at a school-record fourth as a senior in 1997.

As a team, the UNLV women will begin the 2006 season at No. 41. After hosting the prestigious Freeman Memorial individual tournament this weekend, the squad's first dual match is set for Jan. 27 vs. Nevada, Reno.

Fila Collegiate Rankings Top 10 Women's Singles
1. Diana Srebrovic    Florida2. Anne Yelsey        Stanford3. Amanda Fink        USC4. Alice Barnes       Stanford5. Nicole Leimbach    TCU6. Daniela Bercek     Duke7. Kristi Miller      Georgia Tech8. Elena Gantcheva    UNLV9. Zuzana Cerna       Baylor10. Theresa Logar     Stanford