• printer friendly
• mail this article
• iPod format
• digg

Photo

Jackie Carleton, shown here in a match against Stanford, and the Bruins will take on Washington S

The women’s tennis team will take its act to the Pacific Northwest this week in hopes of getting back on track following a disastrous weekend at home against Cal and Stanford.

The Bruins (12-7, 3-1), who have fallen to a season-low No. 15 ranking, will take on Washington State (7-10, 0-5) today in Pullman and will then travel to Seattle to face No. 7 Washington (14-3, 3-2).

“This is a very important weekend for us,” UCLA head coach Stella Sampras Webster said. “We need to go in and take care of Washington State, and then Washington is a very strong team and a very experienced team.”

One factor that UCLA must be prepared to face is the possibility of inclement weather. The conditions during either match could easily be very different than what the team is used to playing in.

“We’ve got to be able to make adjustments if we have to play indoors or outdoors,” Sampras said. “It could be cold and it could be raining, so we’ve got to be able to adjust well.”

Sampras Webster hopes to be able to use freshman Feriel Esseghir in both singles and doubles this weekend. Esseghir, who has missed most of the season due to a foot injury, was limited to doubles against Stanford and singles against Cal.

“Having Feriel in the lineup makes our team a ton stronger and everyone else on the team seems to be healthy,” Sampras Webster said.

With the team as healthy as it has been all season, the singles lineup for the Bruins will likely consist of Sara Walker, Jackie Carleton, Susi Wild, Esseghir, Sarah Gregg and Laura Gordon. Carleton and Esseghir will play No. 1 doubles, Walker and Gordon will fill the No. 2 position, and Wild and Gregg will round out the doubles lineup at the No. 3 position.

Washington State will likely pose little threat to the Bruins, as they have struggled tremendously in Pac-10 play so far this season. The Cougars are currently 0-5 in conference play and have been shut out 7-0 by Cal, Stanford and Washington.

The Bruins will face a significantly greater challenge from the Huskies on Saturday. Washington has won 12 of its last 14 matches and consequently has earned its highest national ranking of the season. The Huskies don’t have anyone ranked in the top 25 in singles play, but they do boast three players in the top 60.

This will be the only meeting between UCLA and the Washington schools this year. This past year the Bruins defeated both teams at the Los Angeles Tennis Center and then notched a 4-1 victory over Washington in the NCAA tournament.