The No. 5 UCLA women’s tennis team got exactly what it bargained for this weekend: stiffer competition.
“With this team, I think they like playing teams that are better, because it keeps them more focused,” said coach Stella Sampras Webster. “It is tough (for us) to play teams where they feel like they are going to win regardless.”
While the opponents may have been tougher, the scores didn’t indicate it. The Bruins beat the San Diego Torreros 4-0 on Friday, and then defeated the 30th-ranked Texas Christian University Horned Frogs 4-1 on Saturday.
The two victories earned the Bruins a trip to the ITA Division I National Women’s Team Indoor Championship in Charlottesville, Va. next month.
The return of junior Robin Anderson, who missed last Tuesday’s season opener against UC Santa Barbara, may have negated the effect of the increased competition. Anderson, the No. 1-ranked singles player, came back and won two doubles matches and a singles match during the two weekend games.
“It was great to see Robin out there, our No. 1 player playing, and playing with the No. 1 doubles,” said Sampras Webster. “That was good to see our full lineup out there.”
While the full lineup may have been out there, the crowd wasn’t. The lack of fanfare at the Los Angeles Tennis Center has sometimes made it difficult for the Bruins to remain aggressive throughout their matches.
“Sometimes we don’t get the biggest crowd, so I think that we need to generate our own energy a little bit better,” said senior Courtney Dolehide after Friday’s match against USD. “It comes naturally when we play teams that are our city rivals, but in other matches, we just need to do a better job of generating (energy) ourselves.”
Energy, aggression and focus have been the points of emphasis for the Bruins so far this season as they have tried to adapt to a new competition format that calls for shorter matches and less warmup time.
Anderson attributed her difficult start in singles play to her inexperience with the new format.
“With the new format, we don’t get to warm up before we play our match,” Anderson said. “Usually, I use that time to work on my serve. I had to start over after doubles and then get a rhythm with my serve again, so that’s why I was double-faulting at the beginning.”
The serving troubles didn’t catch up with Anderson, who easily won her first singles match of the season on Friday against USD by a score of 6-0, 6-0.
But the competition will only get tougher for Anderson and the Bruins. Their next game will be on February 7 at the ITA Division I National Women’s Team Indoor Championship in Virginia.