May 20, 2003

GAINESVILLE, FL -- Junior Nataly Cahana (Qiriat Bialik, Israel) dropped a three set decision to Maja Mlakar of Arizona in the First Round of the NCAA Women's Tennis Singles Tournament. Cahana, making her third appearance in the national tournament, ends her season with a 29-9 record.

Cahana's match lasted two hours at the Alfred Ring Tennis Complex on the campus of the University of Florida. Cahana took the first set 6-1, but dropped the next two sets to Mlakar, 6-4, 6-2, to end her run. Mlakar entered the tournament ranked No. 29 with a 24-14 overall mark.

Ranked 26th by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), Cahana earned her third consecutive CAA Player of the Year award last month. Among her season highlights include the finals of the ITA All-American Tournament and the William & Mary Fall Invitational. She has been the highest ranked women's singles player all season long in the CAA and has posted victories over five players who were ranked among the top 30 nationally this season.