Women's Tennis

SDSU Women's Tennis Prepares for Busy Week

SDSU Women's Tennis Prepares for Busy WeekSDSU Women's Tennis Prepares for Busy Week

March 19, 2007

SAN DIEGO -

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AZTEC WOMEN'S TENNIS PREPARES FOR BUSY WEEK

  • The San Diego State women's tennis team returns to courts this week, battling four opponents in six days. The Aztecs kick off their busy stretch with a non-conference clash against Pac-10 foe Washington on Tuesday, March 20, at Aztec Tennis Center. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. PDT.
    Following its home dual with the Huskies, SDSU opens up Mountain West Conference play on Friday when it travels to Las Vegas, Nev., for a showdown with Air Force at Fertitta Tennis Complex. Starting time for the league lidlifter is set for 10 a.m. PDT.
    San Diego State split a pair of matches last week, posting a dramatic 4-3 victory over No. 52 Iowa at home on March 13, before experiencing a reversal of fortune at Loyola Marymount four days later by an identical 4-3 count.
    After the MWC opener, the Aztecs will remain in Sin City to tangle with Wyoming on Saturday, March 24, before closing out the weekend against Colorado State on Sunday, March 25. Both matches are also slated for a 10 a.m. PDT start.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES

  • Washington (1-10, 0-4 Pac-10) has fallen on hard times season as all 10 of its defeats have come at the hands of ranked teams.
    Most recently, the Huskies dropped a 4-3 decision at No. 42 Washington State in a non-conference match on Sunday. Despite grabbing the early doubles point, the Huskies could only manage two victories in singles play as the Cougars rallied for the win.
    Individually, freshman Joyce Ardies leads UW with five wins in dual-match competition playing primarily at the No. 3 position. In doubles play, the Husky tandem of junior Tara Simpson and sophomore Melinda Wong has racked up six victories alternating between the second and third spots.

SERIES HISTORY VS. WASHINGTON

  • The Aztecs and Huskies have split the 10 all-time meetings between the two schools with the Scarlet and Black taking the last two encounters. Last year, SDSU engineered a 5-2 upset over then-No. 38 Washington in Seattle for the Aztecs' third victory in a eight-match winning streak.
    SDSU owns a 53-135 all-time record against Pac-10 opponents, which unfortunately includes an 0-3 mark this season. The Aztecs previously found themselves on the wrong side of the score against California (7-0), Arizona (4-3) and USC (7-0).
    Following its match with the Huskies, the Scarlet and Black will engage its fifth Pac-10 team of the 2007 campaign when Oregon visits Montezuma Mesa on Friday, April 6.

FRONT RANGE DOMINANCE

  • San Diego State comes into this weekend's Mountain West Conference slate having never tasted defeat against Air Force, Wyoming and Colorado State. The Aztecs are a perfect 28-0 against the three schools, including a 12-0 record vs. the Rams and an 8-0 mark against both the Falcons and Cowgirls.

SCOUTING THE FALCONS

  • Air Force (9-7, 0-1 MWC) enters Friday's match with a little momentum having won three of four matches, including a home sweep of Butler (6-1) and Division II Colorado State-Pueblo (7-0) last Friday. The Falcons also have a conference dual under their belts, suffering a 6-1 setback on the road to Wyoming on Feb. 3. Individually, Kelly Morgan has gradually climbed up Air Force's singles ladder throughout the spring, playing the last four matches at the No. 2 spot. The Falcon senior sports an 18-12 record on the season, including an 11-5 mark in dual-match competition.

SCOUTING THE COWGIRLS

  • After a 4-4 start, Wyoming (5-7, 1-0 MWC) has dropped three of four matches, including a tough 4-3 decision at Jacksonville on March 16. Senior Andrea House leads the squad with eight victories so far this spring, while freshman Sarah Summerfield has made an immediate splash in Laramie, ascending to the top spot in the Cowgirls' lineup in dual-match competition.
    Prior to its clash with the Aztecs, Wyoming will square off against UNLV on Friday, March 23.

SCOUTING THE RAMS

  • Colorado State (4-4, 0-0 MWC) has been on a roll of late, winning three straight matches last week during a spring break excursion to Hilton Head, S.C. The Rams did not lose a single point on their trip, blasting Colgate, Dayton and Bucknell by a combined score of 21-0. Emily Kirchem, Lauren Strasburger and Laura Neal have all seen action atop CSU's singles rotation this spring. Kirchem, a senior, is a three-time all-MWC honoree.
    Before arriving in Las Vegas, the Rams will travel to Cal State Northridge for a non-conference tilt on Friday, March 23.

KEY DOUBLES POINT

  • Winning the doubles point for San Diego State is the key to victory as it is for most teams. Six times the Aztecs have won the doubles point to start competition and five times they walked away with the victory (vs. Cal State Fullerton, vs. UC Riverside, at Hawai'i, vs. Rice and vs. Iowa). The lone exception occurred on Feb. 16, when SDSU took two of three doubles matches and wound up falling to Long Beach State, 5-2. The seven times San Diego State dropped the doubles point it resulted in seven defeats.

FIVE ALSO A MAGIC NUMBER

  • In addition to winning the doubles point, one constant in the Aztecs' five wins this season has been the play at the No. 5 singles position. In each of the team's five victories, San Diego State won the doubles point and triumphed at No 5. In the wins over Cal State Fullerton and Rice, junior Sisse Nielsen played in the fifth spot, while freshman Kathryn Kitts and senior Yuki Hagiwara occupied the same position against Hawai'i and UC Riverside, respectively.
    Last week against Iowa, sophomore Milana Yusupov was the last player remaining on the court as her come-from-behind victory at No. 5 provided the clinching point in the Aztecs' thriller over the Hawkeyes.