UCLA
Washington
Pacific Northwest Foes Await Bruins
March 30, 2017 | Women's Tennis
LOS ANGELES -- Two weeks after topping No. 35 Oregon in its Pac-12 road opener, the UCLA women's tennis team travels even further north for dates with Washington and Washington State. The Bruins will take on the Huskies Friday, March 31, at 1:30 p.m. The match will be broadcast by Pac-12 Networks. UCLA will return to action a day later with a 10:00 a.m. clash with the Cougars.
UCLA vs. Washington -- The Bruins hold a 24-2 all-time mark against the Huskies. The teams most recently faced off at Los Angeles Tennis Center last year (March 5), where UCLA recorded a 5-2 win. Washington collected the doubles point, as well as the first decision in singles play. Current Bruin players Alaina Miller, Terri Fleming and Kristin Wiley recorded the final three Bruin points, as Miller supplied the clincher.
UCLA vs. Washington State -- UCLA has dropped just one of 23 matches all time against Washington State. The Bruins recorded a 6-1 win last year (March 4) at Los Angeles Tennis Center, as current Bruin players Miller and Wiley formed a doubles duo that clinched the first point of the match with a 6-2 decision on Court 3. Miller also posted the clinching point in singles play on Court 3, while Wiley and Kelly Shaffer joined her in securing straight-set wins against their Cougar opponents.
UCLA in the ITA Rankings -- The Bruins checked in at No. 20 in the latest Oracle/ITA Division I Women's National Team Rankings, which were announced Tuesday. Out of action since their Pac-12 road opener at Oregon (March 17), the Bruins fell one spot from their previous placement. Singles rankings, which were last updated March 21, find Shibahara tops among Bruins at No. 3. Hart, meanwhile, checked in at No. 88. In the doubles rankings, teams of Hart-Shibahara (No. 6), Hart-Fleming (No. 22) and Andrews-Miller (No. 62) found themselves ranked among the nation's best.
Andrews Acclimates -- In addition to freshmen Hart and Shibahara, sophomore Andrews is also new to the Bruin lineup this season. Prior to transferring to UCLA, the Pomona, Calif. native earned All-American honors in singles and doubles while at Tyler Junior College during the 2015-16 season. Andrews began her dual-match career at UCLA with back-to-back singles losses, but has recovered to tally a 6-3 record over her last nine decisions. The sophomore is 7-2 in doubles play, including a 3-0 mark since moving to Court 2 alongside Miller.
Doubles Trouble -- The month of March has been kind to the Bruins in doubles play, as they have yet to drop a match. The 8-0 mark began at Baylor, where UCLA debuted a new lineup that featured Fleming and Jada Hart on Court 1, Gabby Andrews and Miller on Court 2 and Ena Shibahara and Wiley on Court 3. Since then, Fleming-Hart and Shibahara-Wiley are 3-0 in dual-match play, while Andrews-Miller holds a 2-0 mark. The team of Fleming and Hart holds an overall record of 7-0, counting tour play.
Player of the Week Honors -- Shibahara earned Pac-12 Player of the Week honors for the second time in her career when it was announced March 13 by the league. No. 3 Shibahara was undefeated during the Bruins' conference-opening week, as the freshman dispatched two ranked singles opponents and, along with Kristin Wiley, clinched the doubles point against No. 14 Stanford on Court 3. Shibahara dropped the first set in each of her Court 1 singles matches, but recovered to record victories against No. 69 Taylor Davidson of Stanford (3-6, 6-4, 6-0) and No. 9 Karla Popovic of 12th-ranked California (4-6, 6-4, 6-3). Her first honor came Feb. 6, one week after redshirt freshman Jada Hart collected the first Pac-12 Player of the Week award of her career.
Sampras Webster Nears 400 -- UCLA head coach Stella Sampras Webster currently holds a career record of 391-148, placing her nine victories short of the 400-win milestone. Already the winningest coach in program history, she has led the Bruins to two NCAA Championships in her 21 seasons. Her teams have also tallied four runner-up finishes. Prior to becoming head coach, Sampras Webster played four seasons at UCLA under predecessor Bill Zaima. Those teams recorded four straight NCAA top-three finishes, while Sampras Webster was named an All-American each of those seasons.
Professional Bruins -- January's Australian Open provided a plethora of moments to make Bruin supporters proud. Jennifer Brady, a two-time All-American who advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Singles Draw in 2015, reached the Round of 16 in Melbourne with a win over 14th-seeded Elena Vesnina of Russia. She joined Barbara Gerken (U.S. Open quarterfinals, 1981), Patricia Hy-Boulais (Wimbledon fourth round, 1997) and Kimberly Po (Australian Open quarterfinals, 1997 and U.S. Open fourth round, 1998) as Bruin tennis alums to reach the Round of 16 in a Grand Slam tournament. Another Bruin tennis alum, Abigail Spears, also starred Down Under. Spears, who starred for UCLA in 2000, claimed the Australian Open mixed doubles championship alongside partner Juan Sebastian Cabal.The win marked the first Grand Slam title for the pair, which knocked off the second-seeded duo of Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig, 6-2, 6-4, despite being unseeded.
Players Mentioned
