SANTA CLARA, Calif – The Santa Clara women's tennis team is gearing up for their next two WCC matches of the season this weekend against BYU and San Diego. Santa Clara clashes against the Cougars at 10 a.m. Sat., March 21, and then take on the Toreros at 12 p.m. Sun., March 22. Both matches taking place at the Degheri Tennis Center.
"It's a big weekend for us with two conference matches," said Bronco head coach Ben Cabell. "We know they are both going to be tight matches but we like our chance in both."
Fresh off a strong win over UC Davis on March 14, the Broncos enter the busy weekend 0-1 in WCC play and with a 3-6 overall record. Santa Clara defeated the visiting Davis Aggies 5-2 behind powerful individual performances as well as doubles play. Singles points were gained behind Delphine Rouvillois, Chelby Cooke, Zeina El Tawil and Nabila Farah. The doubles advantage was earned by Cooke/Rouvillois – now 4-0 – and Farah/Daniella Silva – who are now 3-1.
"Getting a win against UC Davis was huge and I think it sets us up very well going into the weekend," added Cabell. "We feel good, like we have improved every single match this season."
BYU is ranked No. 50 nationally in the March 17 ITA rankings. The team is 7-6 overall and 2-2 in WCC play, with wins over Portland and LMU and losses to San Francisco and Pacific. They have defeated two ranked teams in then-No. 37 Houston on Jan. 19 and then-No. 37 New Mexico on Feb. 28. In the Cougars' most recent match they beat Oregon 4-3; Santa Clara lost to the Ducks on Feb. 21 in Santa Barbara.
San Diego is 1-6 overall. The team has its first true road matches, both in the WCC, this weekend. The Toreros' sole win thus far came against Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 25, in their first match of the dual season, but have lost six straight since.
Putting the kibosh on a six-game slide was the first step in a Santa Clara resurgence, as the team now looks ahead for the oncoming output from its remaining conference opponents. The Broncos play at home in their three matches through March 27, then take to the road for six consecutive WCC away matches that will take them through the end of the regular season.
"Our goal from the beginning of the season has been to put us in the best possible position in conference to get a high seed, and give us a good shot going into the conference tournament," commented Cabell. "And this is where we start."
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Go Broncos!
