Feb. 22, 2007

Up Next
The Santa Clara Broncos play their only match of the week on Friday, Feb. 23 at the Degheri Tennis Center against the University of San Francisco. The dual match begins at 2 p.m. PT. The Broncos are looking for their second win of the season after splitting two matches last week.

Last Week
Santa Clara split two matches last week against two conference opponents. On Feb. 17, SCU earned a dominating 5-2 win over the Gonzaga Bulldogs at home. After shifting the doubles pairs around, the Broncos won the doubles point behind wins by No. 1 Erika Barnes and Casey Knutson and No. 3 Kim Daniel and Myra Davoudi. Santa Clara then won four singles matches in straight sets, led by Davoudi, who won her first match at No. 1 singles. The win was the Broncos first of the season. The next day, SCU ran into a red-hot Saint Mary's team and fell 7-0. The doubles team of Stephanie Galainena and Lindsay McBride won their match at No. 2 doubles for the Broncos only victory of the day.

Notes:

Daniel And Knutson Tied For Ninth Overall In Singles Wins
Kim Daniel posted the 43rd win of her career last Saturday against Gonzaga at No. 5 singles, while Casey Knutson won her 43rd career win against Gonzaga. Both players are now tied for ninth overall in singles victories in Santa Clara women's tennis history. With two more wins this season, Daniel and Knutson will move into the No. 8 spot held by Kelly Leathers, who played from 2003-06.

Lineup Shifts
Prior to the Gonzaga match, the Broncos made some changes to their lineup. Myra Davoudi moved up to No. 1 singles, while Casey Knutson moved to No. 2. Also, Kim Daniel moved to No. 5 and Stephanie Galainena took her game to the No. 6 spot. The moves all worked in the Broncos favor as all four players won their matches at their new positions. The doubles team of Myra Davoudi and Kim Daniel also won their first match of the spring in their first appearance together this spring.

Georgino Out For Season
Sophomore Samantha Georgino will be out for the rest of the season after recently undergoing major surgery on her elbow. Her recovery time is set for nine months. Georgino struggled with the injury in the fall before having the surgery just prior to the spring season. She last played in the Bulldog Classic in Fresno, Calif. in September.

Last Match Against San Francisco
San Francisco earned a 4-3 win over the Broncos in the last meeting between the teams on Feb. 20, 2006 at the Degheri Tennis Center. SCU won the doubles point with victories by Casey Knutson and Kelly Leathers at No. 1 and Erika Barnes and Stephanie Herrmann at No. 3. However, the Dons recovered to win four out of the six singles matches. Only Knutson and Leathers won at singles with Leathers beating Emma Taylor at No. 2 and Knutson defeating Joana Macedo at No. 3. The match was tied at 3-3 before Mylene Martin defeated Myra Davoudi 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 at No. 5 to give USF the win.

Cabell's Take
Head coach Ben Cabell, on first win against Gonzaga: "Beating Gonzaga was important for us. They are a very improved team and we played well in both doubles and singles. That win will help us with seeding in the conference tournament and we had some great performances up and down the lineup."

Cabell, on Davoudi's play against Gonzaga: "Myra had a great day against Gonzaga in both doubles and singles. She and Kim (Daniel) have played well together in the past and they did a good job out there. She then stepped up and took on the challenge of playing No. 1. She definitely gets the game ball for that day."

Cabell, on Saint Mary's match: "Right now, they are a notch above us. They were tough at every position and they have some good doubles teams. Steph (Galainena) and Lindsay (McBride) had a great match at No. 2 doubles and showed that we can beat some ranked players."

Cabell, looking ahead to San Francisco: "It is going to be another good test for us. We are very evenly matched, but if we play well, we have a good chance to beat them. Again, we need to play well because USF is a conference opponent and we want to be seeded as high as we can when the tournament comes around."

Cabell, on time off in between matches: "We have gotten some good practice in this week so we have been able to strategize and work on some things. That is the nice thing about only having one or two matches in a week. You can really focus on your opponent and come up with a solid game plan."