Coming off two hard-fought losses earlier in the month at the National Team Indoors, it is safe to say that the No. 8 ranked UCLA women’s tennis team has regained its stride, having won three consecutive matches in the past seven days.
On Wednesday, the Bruins improved their overall record to 8-2, after defeating No. 55 ranked Pepperdine for the second time this season, 4-3.
Since last Thursday, along with Pepperdine, the Bruins have defeated Loyola Marymount and Hawai’i, all three matches haven taken place on the Bruins home court, the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
On the season, the Bruins’ only losses have come on the road, and coach Stella Sampras Webster, along with her players, understands the importance of winning at home.
“We use playing at home to our advantage as much as possible,” Sampras Webster said after Wednesday’s match. “We get to play in front of our fans and we love that support.”
Sampras Webster’s players second that notion.
“Home court is huge for us,” senior Ashley Joelson said. “Our courts are a lot different from other people’s courts in that they are slower, so home court advantage is really big.”
UCLA got off to a hot start in Wednesday’s match.
The tandems of Andrea Remynse and Yasmin Schnack, and Carling Seguso and Stephanie Wetmore both won their respective doubles matches, 8-4 and 8-1, capturing the doubles point for the Bruins.
In singles competition, Schnack, along with Joelson and Seguso, all went on to post straight-set victories in their respective matches.
After Wednesday’s match, Schnack, who defeated Pepperdine’s Anamika Bhargava, 6-3, 6-4, stressed how important it was for this Bruins squad to bounce back after the two close defeats at the National Indoors.
“It’s really good for us and really important to get these wins because we were bummed after those losses,” Schnack said. “We were in both of those matches. But this just shows how good we are and how good of a team we can be.”
Although disappointed by the two losses as well, coach Sampras Webster preached to her squad that the season is far from over.
“We have to see the big picture,” Sampras Webster said.
“It’s a long season, and we’re going to go through some tough losses. That’s why we play during the season, to help prepare ourselves for May and the NCAA Championships. We’re using every match to improve and get better,” Sampras Webster added.
Next up for the Bruins is another tough test when they face Fresno State today at the LATC.
The Bulldogs feature the doubles tandem of Tinesta Rowe and Melanie Gloria, the duo that lost to UCLA’s championship doubles pair in last year’s doubles finals.
The two will more than likely have revenge on their minds when they face this year’s Bruins squad.