The accolades have rained on freshman Kristy Dascoli like a Korean monsoon recently.She finished the season as the No. 53 singles player in the nation on her way to being crowned Freshman of the Year in the Big Ten and named to the first-team All Big Ten squad. But her most significant accomplishment was her invitation to the NCAA Championships, the first Lady Buckeye to ever receive that honor.”This is great for Kristy,” said coach Chuck Merzbacher. “She belongs to the best group of college players in the nation.””I’m so excited,” said Dascoli, who finished the season at 24-9. “But it probably won’t hit me until I get there.”The top 64 players in the country are invited to the NCAA’s, which will be held at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. on May 25-29.Making it to nationals has been a goal of Dascoli’s since the beginning of the year, although she admitted that she really did not think it would happen.”I didn’t think it was possible but once the Big Ten’s (championship tournament) came around I knew I had a shot,” she said.Dascoli headlined Merzbacher’s first recruiting class at OSU.”Getting this kind of recognition is how it starts when you’re building a program,” said Merzbacher. “Even if it’s just one individual it’s still a very elite group of players.”Another key member of the coach’s first class was Dascoli’s high school teammate Briana Harris. The two played together at Bradenton Academy on Bradenton, Fla. and teamed up at first doubles this year. They had the best record in the Big Ten at 9-1 and finished the season ranked 30th in the nation but were not among the 32 teams invited to compete at nationals.”We were disappointed but we’re just freshmen so we have the next three years to get there,” said Dascoli.”They really had a great year. They made a great run at it but they fell just short,” said Merzbacher.He said the pressure is on for next year.”They really set themselves up for nest year. They’re going to be one of the top 15-20 teams in the country,” said Merzbacher.Although she finished with the best record in the Big Ten at 9-1, Dascoli finished second to Northwestern’s Katherine Nasser in the voting for Big Ten player of the year. In fact, Dascoli actually defeated Nasser in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2, in Evanston, Ill. earlier this year.”She had a little better fall than me and I’m a little disappointed but I’d rather go to the NCAAs than get player of the year,” said Dascoli.Merzbacher has been as pleased with Dascoli’s attitude off the court as he is with her performance on it.”She’s someone who doesn’t let it go to her head. She’s real humble but still really excited,” he said.Dascoli echoed that humility.”I was kind of surprised. I figured you had to be really good to get to there,” she said.Dascoli has proven – she’s really good.