University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Women's Tennis Brings Past, Present Together
March 21, 2018 | Women's Tennis
LOS ANGELES -- Over 100 current and former UCLA women's tennis players and coaches convened March 16-18 to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the program's first NCAA Championship and the life of legendary coach Bill Zaima. Included among that group were members of some of Zaima's first teams from nearly five decades ago.
"We were so excited to have all of our former players join us this past weekend," said UCLA women's head tennis coach Stella Sampras Webster. "Seeing alumni from the past 50 years on campus again and being able to honor our 2008 NCAA champions and our friend Bill Zaima made the reunion event special."
Eight members of the 2008 team attended, including the NCAA doubles-champion duo of Tracy Lin and Riza Zalameda. Joining Lin and Zalameda were Becky Duesler, Anna-Viktoria Lind, Elizabeth Lumpkin Robinson, Andrea Remynse, Stephanie Wetmore and Sarah Yang. Former strength and conditioning coach John Farr was also in attendance. Just under 10 years ago, the group captured the program's first NCAA Championship with a 4-0 win over California at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Okla.
The alumni weekend kicked off with a welcome reception at the Wasserman Football Center, which neighbors Los Angeles Tennis Center to the southeast and was opened in August 2017. It began a weekend meshing old and new, as guests were also invited to tour other new and updated facilities on campus the next day.
Saturday began with the aforementioned guided campus and facilities tours. An LATC clubhouse luncheon followed, as well as an opportunity to watch 12-time Grand Slam singles titleholder Novak Djokovic, who was practicing at LATC that day. A two-hour tennis mixer hosted by the current team and staff followed, as guests mingled and shared memories.
The night concluded with a gala banquet and celebration at the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame. NCAA Championship trophy No. 102 was the center of attention, as guests were invited to take photos with the historic piece of hardware. More stories were told, including ones of Zaima, whose widow, Carole, was on hand. Sampras Webster presented the longtime UCLA employee with a plaque to commemorate her husband's accomplishments and meaning to the school and program.
The festivities culminated Sunday, as a clubhouse brunch led into No. 15 UCLA's noon conference match with No. 20 Oregon. With the eyes of their predecessors upon them, the 2018 iteration of the Bruins blanked the Ducks, 4-0.
