SEC women's preseason poll announced

VU picked to finish third in the Eastern Division

Jan. 18, 2013

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Vanderbilt women's tennis was picked to finish third in the SEC Eastern Division by the league's coaches, as was announced by the Southeastern Conference Friday morning.

The Florida Gators were picked as the overall champion for the fourth-consecutive year. Vanderbilt begins the spring ranked No. 26 in the ITA Rankings.

Georgia was picked to finish second (83 points) behind Florida in the Eastern Division, with Vanderbilt coming in at third (62 points). The remainder of the East was: 4. Tennessee (61 points), 5. South Carolina (44 points), 6. Kentucky (23 points), and Missouri (21 points).

Texas A&M was voted as Western Division Champion with 94 points. Alabama was voted second (88 points) with Ole Miss third (66 points). The remainder of the West was: 4. Arkansas (47 points), 5. Auburn (46 points), 6. LSU (34 points), and Mississippi State (17 points).

The preseason poll is voted on by the women's tennis head coach at each institution and is based on a 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 count in each division. They also vote for the overall champion, with each vote counting as one point.

The 26^th-ranked Commodores are in action this weekend at the Miami Invitational where they will compete against three top-15 teams in the country (No. 9 Miami, No. 11 Texas and No. 14 Texas A&M).

The complete tally for the poll is below.

Eastern Division Points
1. Florida 98
2. Georgia 83
3. Vanderbilt 62
4. Tennessee 61
5. South Carolina 44
6. Kentucky 23
7. Missouri 21

Western Division Points
1. Texas A&M 94
2. Alabama 88
3. Ole Miss 66
4. Arkansas 47
5. Auburn 46
6. LSU 34
7. Mississippi State 17

Overall Regular Season Champion: Florida (13 points), Texas A&M (1)