Teams: UC Davis vs. Portland
Records: Aggies, 9-6; Pilots, 11-6
Where: Marya Welch Tennis Center
When: Today at 2 p.m.
Who to watch: Santa Clara couldn’t handle Anita Athavale and Desiree Stone together, and it didn’t fare any better when they were apart.
On Mar. 12, the two sophomores paired up at the No. 2 doubles spot to defeat Myra Davoudi and Lindsay McBride, 8-5, and then captured straight-set singles wins to lead UC Davis to a 5-2 victory.
They’ve got great chemistry, said head coach Bill Maze. Sometimes when you put a team together, you can tell it works, and they are one of those teams.
Did you know? Aggie fans looking to catch their women’s tennis team this season will soon be out of time.
UC Davis’ final homestand of the year opens today and closes Sunday at 10 a.m. against Cal State Fullerton.
Preview: The Aggies can’t lose. They’ve won five of their last six matches and are a perfect 6-0 at the Marya Welch Tennis Center this season.
The Pilots can’t lose. They’ve won six straight matches and nine of their last 10.
This afternoon, something has to give.
I think it’s going to be great, Maze said. We both seem to be peaking right now. Last year we lost to them, but we’re better this year, and they’re better this year, so I think it’s going to be a heck of a match.
If there is an advantage to be had in today’s matchup, UC Davis owns it with its home court.
Not only are the Aggies undefeated at the Marya Welch Tennis Center, the Pilots – head coached by Susie Campbell-Gross – are just 1-2 on the road compared to their sterling 10-4 record at the indoor Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center in Portland.
She tends to recruit big, strong women with big, strong serves, and that tends to work well indoors because there is no wind, Maze said. It seems like you can hit the ball harder indoors, so it makes it tough.
The match will be UC Davis’ final non-conference tune-up before facing four straight Big West Conference opponents.
It will also be Portland’s second outing in as many days. Wednesday, it traveled to Rohnert Park to face Sonoma State, the results of which were unavailable by press time.
-Michael Gehlken
