LA JOLLA, Calif. – The UC San Diego women's tennis team looks to remain unbeaten in Big West play as the Tritons (2-4 overall, 1-0 Big West) host Cal Poly (2-2, 0-0 BW) Friday afternoon at Northview Tennis Courts. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Last season, UC San Diego took the doubles point from the Mustangs but fell by a 4-1 score in San Luis Obispo.
DETAILS
Match 7
UC San Diego (2-4 overall, 1-0 Big West) vs. Cal Poly (2-2, 0-0 Big West)
Friday, February 11 | 1 p.m.
Northview Tennis Courts | La Jolla
ATTENDING UC SAN DIEGO HOME MATCHES
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UC SAN DIEGO AND COVID-19
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For the latest information on UC San Diego and COVID-19, please visit the University's
Return to Learn site.
ABOUT UC SAN DIEGO
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
Overall: 2-4
Big West: 1-0
Home: 2-2
Away: 0-2
Neutral: 0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0
Streak: W1
ITA Ranking: NR
ABOUT CAL POLY
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
Overall: 2-2
Big West: 0-0
Home: 1-0
Away: 0-1
Neutral: 1-1
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-1
Streak: W1
ITA Ranking: NR
SOMETHING IN COMMON
Both the Tritons and Mustangs faced – and beat – Sacramento State in 2022. UC San Diego earned a 5-2 win over the Hornets on Jan. 22 and Cal Poly blanked Sacramento State last weekend.
ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons playing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program is in its second year of a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the
Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. At that time, all sports will be eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.
LAST TIME OUT
UC San Diego kicked off Big West play with a resounding 5-2 women's tennis victory over UC Irvine on Saturday afternoon. For the third time in the last four matches, the Tritons earned the doubles point. UC San Diego's freshmen tandem of
Naomi Nguyen and
Katelyn Vu picked their second straight win, 6-3 at No. 2. The Tritons clinched the point when junior
Sophie Pearson and sophomore
Ella Pachl won 6-3 at No. 1. UC San Diego completed the doubles sweep when senior captain
Anu Bhadada and junior
Rachel Wagner were victorious in the third position by a 6-4 score.
When singles play began, UC San Diego took a 2-0 lead in the match as Nguyen won at No. 3 when her opponent was forced to retire due to injury. The Tritons went up 3-0 as Pachl was victorious at No. 1, 6-3, 6-3. The Anteaters won at No. 4 and No. 6 to draw within 3-2 in the match. But UC San Diego clinched the conference win with Wagner's three-set win at No. 5. Pearson won a marathon match at No. 2 to make the final score 5-2 in favor of the Tritons.
LAST TIME VS. THE MUSTANGS
The UC San Diego women's tennis team became the first Big West Conference team to take the doubles point from Cal Poly, but the host Mustangs rebounded in singles play to pick up a 4-1 victory.
Sophie Pearson and
Ella Pachl continued their strong work in doubles, picking up a 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles. The Mustangs won 6-4 at the No. 2 position, but the Tritons earned the doubles point thanks to a 7-5 win at No. 3 by
Shweta Kumar and
Monica Stratakos – their second straight doubles win.
PACHL CAPTURES BIG WEST HONORS
After helping the Tritons to a victory in their first Big West match, UC San Diego sophomore
Ella Pachl was honored by the Big West as the conference's Player of the Week on February 9.
The Laguna Beach native teamed with junior
Sophie Pearson at No. 1 doubles for a pair of victories: 6-4 over Pacific on Friday and 6-3 over UC Irvine on Saturday. Playing at the top spot in singles action, Pachl posted a tidy 6-3, 6-3 win over Irvine on Saturday to help the Tritons to a 5-2 victory in their first Big West match. On Friday, Pachl led 3-1 in the third set at No. 1 singles when the match was halted. For the week, she was 2-0 in doubles and 1-0 in singles.
DOUBLES TROUBLE
The UC San Diego women's tennis doubles tandem of junior
Sophie Pearson and sophomore
Ella Pachl were recognized as All-Big West Conference Honorable Mention following the 2021 spring season. The duo became the first UC San Diego pair recognized by the Big West for their on-court play.
HOME COOKIN'
UC San Diego has won 12 of its last 17 matches at Northview Tennis Courts, a .706 winning percentage.
MAKING THE GRADE
The Tritons have continued to excel in the classroom. UC San Diego posted a 3.43 team grade point average during fall quarter. Senior captain
Shweta Kumar and junior
Tiara Nourishad each posted a 4.0. Last spring, the UC San Diego women's tennis team earned the 2021 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team award, while five Tritons earned ITA Scholar-Athlete accolades.
Anu Bhadada,
Shweta Kumar,
Tiara Nourishad,
Sophie Pearson, and
Julianna Sabile collected ITA Scholar-Athlete honors.
POSSIBLE STARTERS
Here are the possible Triton starters for this week based on the team's last match on Feb. 5 vs. UC Irvine:
Doubles
1.
Ella Pachl/
Sophie Pearson
2.
Katelyn Vu/
Naomi Nguyen
3.
Anu Bhadada/
Rachel Wagner
Singles
1.
Ella Pachl
2.
Sophie Pearson
3.
Naomi Nguyen
4.
Katelyn Vu
5.
Rachel Wagner
6.
Anna Snissarenko
TEAM CAPTAINS
UC San Diego seniors
Anu Bhadada and
Shweta Kumar are this year's team captains.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
This year's Tritons are composed of a pair of seniors, six juniors, and three sophomores and four freshmen. Last year's squad boasted no seniors.
MEET THE NEWCOMERS
Entering its second year as an NCAA Division I program in the Big West Conference, the UC San Diego women's tennis team announced its incoming class of four standout scholar-athletes.
Naomi Nguyen,
Anna Snissarenko,
Adriana Tabares, and
Katelyn Vu are the newest members of the Tritons women's tennis team.
COACH LAPLANTE IN 43RD SEASON
This season marks the 43rd of legendary head coach
Liz LaPlante in charge of the UC San Diego women's tennis program. She is the longest-tenured coach on the Triton staff, with fellow San Diego State graduate
Denny Harper having just completed his 42nd year at the helm of the men's water polo team. LaPlante has led UC San Diego to four national championships (1985, 1987, 1989, 1994) and five national runner-up efforts (1982, 1984, 1990, 1995, 2000), all at the NCAA Division III level, as well as seven California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) banners, all in succession between 2004-10, before the league stopped sponsoring tennis. The four national titles are still the third-most in Division III history. LaPlante's all-time dual-match record stands at 596-315. She has recorded winning seasons and posted double-digit victory totals in all but five of her full seasons. Her teams have had 20 or more wins on five occasions.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego continues its five-match homestand with a pair of Big West contests next week. The Tritons will host Hawai'i on Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. and Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 20 at Noon.
WHY THE TRITONS?
The Triton is described as the offspring of Poseidon and Amphitrite, a demigod of the sea with a lower part of the body like that of a fish. It is known as a mighty and fierce sea warrior. Given UC San Diego's close proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its connections with the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Triton became our mascot in 1964.
UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS LAUNCHES WEEKLY PODCAST
As part of UC San Diego's transition to Division I, the Athletics Department launched a weekly podcast,
Tritoncast. Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and the Big West Conference. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on the most popular podcasting apps, including Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Audible, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Vurbl. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on Twitter
@Tritoncast.
GET SOCIAL WITH UC SAN DIEGO TENNIS
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through
Twitter and
Instagram. The team's handle is @ucsdwtennis.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the
Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!
GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories,
click here.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
