The last time the No. 12 UCLA women’s tennis team took on No. 19 Pepperdine was en route to an appearance in the NCAA Championships Round of 16 on the road in Malibu.
The Bruins (14-7, 5-2 Pac-10), who were able to avenge a loss that they suffered on the same courts at Pepperdine just a few months prior and make the trip to Palo Alto that the Waves had been hoping to make themselves, realize that their opponents will be coming in with great motivation.
“We do realize that they’re a strong team and that they’re going to fight to try to get a win over us,” junior Elizabeth Lumpkin said. “It seems like every time we play them, they get up to play us and get really eager.”
Coming off a weekend with impressive performances against two of not only the Pac-10’s best teams but the nation’s top teams as well, the Bruins have gained confidence at a time when they believe that several other teams may have folded.
UCLA entered the final stretch of the season with injuries to two key players, yet they were still able to challenge No. 1 Stanford (19-1, 6-0) and topple No. 9 Cal (19-5, 5-2).
With today’s match, the Bruins are looking to carry on more of the momentum and continue to build upon it before their final match of the season on the road against No. 8 USC on Saturday.
“Right now I feel like we’re looking at this like a tune-up for USC,” junior Tracy Lin said. “I’m expecting us to win and really gather some more confidence before going to USC.”
For some of the members of this year’s team who returned from last year, the matchup against Pepperdine has taken on a new dynamic ““ one that is reminiscent of a more traditional and legendary rivalry.
“It’s not only a battle with USC anymore, but now Pepperdine is kind of included because they beat us last year and then we beat them,” sophomore Ashley Joelson said.
With the match this season being played at home rather than on the road, the Bruins will look to take advantage and jump on the Waves as soon as possible, including during the doubles point.
Doubles has been one of the more difficult aspects for the Bruins this season, with several matches ending in 4-3 losses ““ matches that could have ended in favor of UCLA had they captured the opening point of the match.
As UCLA coach Stella Sampras Webster continues to juggle with her doubles teams, the Bruins seem to have found the best teams possible given the circumstances.
Once the doubles matches are done, however, the players will look to employ a very similar strategy in singles in hopes of not getting down too early in the match.
“We really need to set the tone ourselves rather than letting them take control early,” Lumpkin said.
“Because they’re a strong team, I think having this match will definitely be good for us before going into the USC match.”