The UCSD women’s tennis team hosted Grand Canyon University in the first round of the National Collegiate Athletics Association Women’s Tennis Championships on May 1. The Tritons were blessed with perfect weather and with a 6-0 win, giving them a shot at No. 2 Hawaii-Hilo on May 7.
UCSD began the match with a 2-0 lead spawning from the absence of Grand Canyon’s No. 1 singles player, Medini Sharma, the California Collegiate Athletic Association Player of the Year, who was forced to sit out due to a fractured foot. The player loss forced Grand Canyon to forfeit the No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles positions to moving up each of its doubles teams and singles players in the lineup.
At No. 1 doubles, senior Julie Westerman and junior Jasmin Dao wasted no time in putting away their opponents, Shawna Young and Gretta Erickson. A combination of double faults and unforced errors from the Grand Canyon duo gave the Tritons an early lead in the beginning of the set. Westerman and Dao used a series of smart and well-placed shots to close out the match by a final score of 8-0.
“”We definitely came out ready today,”” Westerman said. “”We were serving well and not making many unforced errors. They had switched their No. 1 and No. 2 doubles from the last time we played them so we were pretty confident.””
Sophomores Tara Siddiqui and Leigh Robert played No. 2 doubles and had a tougher time closing out their match against Nikita Bhardwaj and Sarah Mitchell. The match was filled with fast points, powerful shots and volleys with both teams rushing the net. Siddiqui and Roberts were up, 7-3, in the second set but had a tough time winning the final point due to a late resurgence by Bhardwaj and Mitchell, making the final score 8-6.
“”At one point, Tara and Leigh just stopped moving, but they quickly recognized that and brought their focus back in the end,”” Assistant Coach Timmer Willing said.
The two doubles wins gave the Tritons a 4-0 lead going into the singles matches. No. 3 Siddiqui and No. 5 sophomore Marissa Hilker gave the Tritons the overall match win with two quick victories. Hilker gave the Tritons win number five with 6-2, 6-1 victories over her opponent, and Siddiqui sealed the match with great shots, frustrating her opponent and ending the match in consecutive sets, 6-2 and 6-0.
At No. 1 singles, Westerman played some of her best tennis all season and outmaneuvered Bhardwaj in the first set, 6-5. Westerman’s hard-hitting serves and range of shots helped her overcome Bhardwaj’s strong play at the beginning of the set. No. 2 Dao had just finished her first set, 6-3, and was up, 2-1, in the second set when the match was called. At the same time, No. 4 Roberts was on her way to blanking her opponent after winning the first set, 6-0, 5-0, in the second set.
“”We came into this match prepared well,”” Willing said. “”With the 2-0 lead everyone was just more relaxed but there’s definitely a lot more added pressure since it’s the NCAA Regionals.””
The Tritons had faced Grand Canyon earlier in the season and came out victorious in a 7-2 win.
“”Today was a good practice match for us,”” Westerman said. “”We’ve been working hard in practice and we’re confident in our abilities.””
Next, the Tritons will head to Hawaii to face No. 2 Hawaii-Hilo on May 7 for round two of the NCAA Regional Championships. The women faced Hawaii-Hilo earlier in the season and lost a close 3-6 decision with many of the matches teetering between the two teams.
“”We’re coming in as the underdogs for this match. I really think we can do it,.”” Siddiqui said. “”If we play well in doubles it’ll give us an edge and carry over to singles. They’re a tough team but it’s definitely a winnable match. We have confidence in ourselves and our doubles lineup is looking very good. Right now we’re not focusing on winning or losing. Whatever happens will happen.””
The Tritons are relying on their last match against Hawaii-Hilo to help them focus on what to prepare for.
“”We’re really looking forward to the match,”” Willing said. “”We’re just going to work on a lot of doubles and preparing for individual match-ups in these next few practices.””
The winner of the match will head to West Florida for the first round of the NCAA National Championship Tournament.
