When the UCLA women’s tennis team returned from its travel-filled weekend in Washington, they did so with a pair of dominating shutout victories.
The No. 15 Bruins opened up Pac-10 play on Friday against Washington without their top two players in the lineup, juniors Riza Zalameda and Tracy Lin.
That wouldn’t stop them from capturing straight-set victories on all six courts, though.
“It was a little bit of extra pressure, not having them play, but we were able to get through it and get the wins,” freshman Yasmin Schnack said.
Schnack, who has been playing at the No. 3 position for the last several matches, filled in for the missing juniors.
She played at the top court in both matches for the first time since the opening matches of the season ““ both of which were losses.
“Even though I was excited to try to play at No. 1 again since I had lost my first two times, I was kind of nervous,” Schnack said.
Schnack wasn’t the only one with nerves, though, as UCLA coach Stella Sampras Webster was also slightly worried about the trip because of the void in her team’s top two spots, according to Schnack.
However, the remainder of her team was able to adjust to the change and help the Bruins improve their overall record to 8-4.
Sophomore Anna-Viktoria Lind and freshman Stephanie Wetmore filled in for the Bruins at the No. 5 and No. 6 positions, respectively.
Neither of the two had any trouble capturing victories for their team either, against Washington or Washington State on Saturday.
“We always prepare for the worst but expect the best, so I wasn’t surprised with the results but obviously happy.” Wetmore said. “The coaches have been saying that this is the deepest team they have had in many years so it’s great to know that even if we are missing players we can still perform as the top team that we are.”
The only troubling aspect for the Bruins on the trip was the nonstop travel, as they found themselves driving around the state of Washington between and after the matches.
“The trip was a real whirlwind, having to be at two different universities day after day when they were pretty far apart,” Wetmore said. “There wasn’t really much time for anything except tennis, eating and sleeping.”
But the Bruins are fortunate to have several days to recuperate before taking on crosstown rival USC at home on Thursday.
UCLA looks to carry its momentum and 2-0 Pac-10 conference record into the match against the Trojans and will hope to have Zalameda and Lin back in the lineup.
“We really managed to keep ourselves together, despite missing Riza and Tracy, so we’re going into Thursday with a lot of confidence, that’s for sure,” Wetmore said.
“It gives us a lot of confidence going up against USC,” Schnack added.
MEN’S TENNIS: Though the No. 5 men’s tennis team did not play in any dual matches over the weekend, several of its members competed in the Pacific Coast Men’s Doubles Championships in La Jolla.
Sophomore Haythem Abid and junior Mathieu Dehaine teamed together to make it to the semifinals of the tournament before losing to Achim Ceban and Benedikt Stronk 6-3, 6-2.
In consolation play, Grant Chen, the director of tennis at UCLA and Nicholas De Goede, a member of UCLA’s club tennis team, reached the semifinals.