In the second release of the Central Region rankings from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), the St. Catherine University tennis team earned the No. 7 spot and remains the top-ranked team in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), while Victoria Bravo (Tucson, Ariz.) earned the No. 11 spot in the individual rankings - the highest among all conference singles players. 

After racing out to a 9-0 start, the St. Catherine squad suffered its first-and-only loss this season against the University of Texas at Dallas last week and fell just one spot from No. 6 in the region. The Wildcats remain undefeated in conference play at 6-0 and one spot ahead of Carleton College (No. 8) after defeating the Knights in February. 

The latest ITA rankings include the first round of singles and doubles rankings for the spring season and the Wildcats are well-represented in both categories.

Bravo - who is a perfect 6-0 in MIAC play and has suffered just two losses all season – has separated herself as the top singles player in the MIAC and one of the best in the region. The next-highest MIAC player in the individual rankings is Anne Lombardi of Carleton at No. 20, while Laurel Kresbach – who Bravo defeated 6-0, 6-4 on March 9 – is the final MIAC player in the rankings at No. 24 respresenting Gustavus Adolphus College. 

But Bravo's accolades don't stop there this week, as she and Kylie Ketcho (Edina, Minn.) earned the No. 11 spot out of 14 ranked doubles teams in the region. The pair suffered just one conference loss this season at the hands of Carleton's Lombardi and Bridget Doyle – a pairing that pulled in the top MIAC ranking at No. 8. Bravo and Ketcho's only other loss as a No. 1 doubles team came in the Wildcats' only team loss to UT Dallas. 

The Wildcats remain the top-ranked MIAC team for the second-straight poll and have already defeated two of the five ranked conference teams in Carleton and Gustavus. The University of St. Thomas (No. 19) and St. Olaf College (No. 20) still remain on the Wildcat schedule for April 19 and 26, respectively. 

Next up, the Wildcats are slated to take on Concordia College on their home courts on Saturday, April 13 at 4 p.m.

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