Fairfax, Va.--It's hard to top the heights the women's tennis team reached last season, winning a school-record 21 matches, but the 2011 George Mason women's tennis team will look to build off that success. The five returning starters accounted for 90 individual match wins in singles play last year, and have aspirations to only improve upon that mark this year.

"We bring back a lot of experience but we also add three new freshmen to our top eight," Coach Curtis said. "We plan to build on that success but in doing so I have increased our strength of schedule so we don't become complacent."

Returnees Brooke Blackwell and Aryn Christman each set career-highs in wins in singles last season, including Blackwell's 19-match win streak. Christman posted a team-high 21 wins.

The Mason lineup will also feature top singles player Kiersten Pappas, who as a freshman, was named to the 2010 All-CAA Third Team in both singles and in doubles teaming with Senior Lindsay Gray. Gray had 17 wins last year in singles play from the number two position, and Alison Wingo posted 16 wins for the Patriots.

"The five returning starters all had very successful seasons. Blackwell's 19 match winning streak and her being named CAA Player of the Week along with Pappas making all CAA as a freshman were incredible achievements for this team."

In a very competitive CAA that features consistent nationally ranked teams in William and Mary, VCU, ODU and Georgia State, the Patriots will look to use this experience to compete in one of their toughest schedules in some time.

"I have made a more difficult schedule to push us more.  Our goal is to be successful with a much tougher schedule this year," said Coach Curtis.

However, for Coach Curtis it is not about what is on paper, it is about what his team does on and off the court.

"Our goal is to help build great individuals who perform exceptionally well in the classroom as well as on the tennis court," he said. 

The addition of Assistant Coach Jessica Keener last year has also played a role in the team's success. "Jess brings valuable experience having recently played for a top 50 program at Marshall University," Coach Curtis said.

Starting Feb. 5 with a match against George Washington University, the team will begin their long journey towards their goals competing with the tough schedule in a very tough conference.

Below is a player breakdown by class.

Seniors

Lindsay Gray:  Gray posted a career-high 17 wins last year, playing mostly out of the number one and two singles spots in dual play.  Teaming up mostly with Kiersten Pappas in doubles play, Gray also posted 17 wins in that category.  Add those stats to Gray hosting her own television show here at Mason, drawing praise from Coach Curtis.  "Lindsay is capable of having a lot of things on her plate at once, but she's still able to put in the time to dedicate herself to a Division I tennis program which is pretty incredible," he said.  Coach Curtis plans for Gray to remain in the number one or two spots in singles play along with keeping together the strong chemistry of her and Pappas in doubles play.

Aryn Christman:  Had an outstanding year last season, posting a team and career-high 21 victories in singles play.  Christman also posted six wins in doubles play.  Played mostly at the number five and six positions in singles play last season and will likely battle for the six spot going into this year, giving the Patriots great depth in singles play.

Stephanie Longueira:  Posted a 1-4 record in singles play last year to go along with a 2-2 record in doubles play.  Longueira is likely to compete for the six to nine positions in singles play.

Juniors

Brooke Blackwell:  While Blackwell's career-high 19 wins are by no stretch of the imagination impressive, it's the loss column that stands out the most:  1.  After sitting out the fall season recovering from knee surgery, Blackwell, only lost her first singles match of the spring season and then went undefeated the remainder of the year. Blackwell also posting seven wins in doubles play.  Blackwell will likely start the season at the number four spot in singles play.

Sophomores

Kiersten Pappas:  Referred to as "KK" by Coach Curtis, Pappas had a strong freshman campaign posting a 17-10 record, mostly out of the number one spot.  Her impressive play did not go unnoticed as she was named to the All-CAA Third Team in both singles and doubles play.  Pappas is likely to remain in the number one spot to start the season in singles play and remain tough in doubles teaming with Gray.

Alison Wingo:  Wingo also had a strong start to her Mason career, posting 16 wins in singles play and 11 in doubles play.  Wingo mostly played at the number three position for the Patriots in singles play and will likely maintain that spot heading into this season.

Andrea Londen: Londen will likely red-shirt this season due to a neck and back issue. She went 4-1 in singles and posted 12 victories in doubles last year.

Freshmen

Ashley Delaney:  Delaney was a three-star player at Centennial High School who was ranked as high as four in Maryland. She played tennis as a freshman at Urbana High School as the team's #1 singles player and was selected All-County in Frederick county and All-Maryland by USTA Mid-Atlantic.  Delaney will likely start at the number five spot in singles play and team with Fotovat to form a strong doubles team.

Yasmin Fotovat:  Fotovat earned Player of the Year and Most Valuable Player award for the while attending Atlee High School. She made it to the Virginia State singles semi-finals and won the Margaret Rodgers Sportsmanship Award. Yasmin played on the Cherry Creek High School team that won the Colorado state championship her freshman year before moving to Virginia.  Fotovat is expected to play between five and eight in singles spots and will be a major contributor in doubles play teaming with Delaney.

Ekaterina "Kate" Desiatnikova:  The St. Petersburg, Russia native played for the American Heritage Stallions in Florida that won two State Championships ('09-'10).  Candidate of Master's of Sport in Kyrgyzstan in tennis and trained at the International Tennis Academy in Miami.  Desiatnikova will likely rotate between the six through eight singles positions and look to rotate into doubles play.