Rutlauka and Velaga Land ITA Northeast Regional Honors – University of Pennsylvania Athletics

PHILADELPHIA – Sabine Rutlauka and Esha Velaga on the University of Pennsylvania women’s tennis team landed Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Northeast Regional honors announced on Wednesday afternoon.
 
Freshman Velaga was named ITA Northeast Regional Rookie of the Year, while junior Rutlauka was named ITA Northeast Regional Player to Watch to account for the postseason honors for the Quakers.
 
Velaga had an outstanding year, landing the #1 ranking in the Northeast Regional singles rankings to pair with her Rookie of the Year nod. Velaga, no stranger to postseason honors, was named the Ivy League Rookie and Player of the Year and unanimous First Team All-ivy Singles. She had a standout first-year campaign, going undefeated in Ivy League play (5-0) to finish the spring with a 15-3 record in her first season wearing the Red and Blue 29-6. The freshman’s fall season was highlighted by winning the ITA Northeast Super Regionals single title. Velaga punched her ticket to the 2024 NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships this season, earning the automatic singles and doubles bid with teammate Eileen Wang to account for the first time in program history the Red and Blue had both singles and doubles representatives. 
 
Though Rutlauka missed the fall due to injury, she made an immediate impact for the Quakers when she hit the courts in the spring, compiling a perfect 7-0 singles record with wins over Temple, #48 Princeton, Cornell, #44 Columbia, #49 Yale, Brown, and #38 Harvard to claim First Team All-Ivy for the first time in her Quaker career. Rutlauka earned the #3 ranking in the ITA Northeast Regional singles rankings to help boost her Player to Watch honor. The junior also garnered First Team All-Ivy Doubles after posting an 8-4 overall record with Wang as her partner. The pair’s outings this season were brightened by wins over #38 Harvard, #44 Yale, and #48 Princeton to help secure their first All-Ivy nod and the #5 ranking in the ITA Northeast Regional doubles rankings.
 

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