UCLA
Arizona State
No. 15 UCLA Welcomes Arizona Schools
April 11, 2018 | Women's Tennis
The No. 15 UCLA women's tennis team, a winner of six straight in Pac-12 play, returns to Los Angeles Tennis Center this week for matchups with No. 33 Arizona State and Arizona. First serve with the Sun Devils will take place Friday at 1:30 p.m. The Bruins will follow up with the Wildcats Saturday at noon. Live stats from LATC will be available each day at uclalivestats.com.
UCLA VS. ARIZONA STATE/ARIZONA
The Bruins hold a 56-18 all-time record versus the Sun Devils. Arizona State has captured the last two meetings, including a 4-3 win in Tempe, Ariz. last season (April 15, 2017). UCLA earned the doubles point and victories on the top two courts, but dropped matches on Courts, 3, 4, 5 and 6. One day earlier, the doubles team of Terri Fleming-Jada Hart dropped its first decision of the year, but the Bruins went on to claim the doubles point and the three finished singles matches. Gabby Andrews clinched the match with a three-set victory on Court 5. UCLA holds a 64-8 all-time mark against Arizona.
LAST WEEK
UCLA swept its Rocky Mountain road trip, edging Utah in a thriller and sweeping Colorado. Abi Altick played the part of hero Friday against the Utes, as the freshman defeated Taylor Calton in three sets (6-7, 6-2, 6-2) for the deciding fourth point. Two days later, high winds drove the Bruins and Buffaloes inside, where UCLA did not relinquish a set on its way to a 7-0 win. It was a big day for Ena Shibahara and Andrews, as the pair clinched the doubles point. Individually, Shibahara also clinched the overall decision, while Andrews picked up her first singles victory since Feb. 16.
AWARDS SEASON
UCLA is one of four schools to have its players awarded with two Pac-12 Player of the Week awards this season. Washington State, Arizona State and California are the others. Ena Shibahara was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week for the week of March 19-25, the conference announced March 27. Shibahara topped ranked opponent Michaela Bayerlova of Washington State, 6-3, 6-4, to clinch the Bruins' win over the previously-16-1 Cougars and cap an impressive Saturday for the sophomore. Earlier, Jada Hart was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the week of Feb. 13. Hart had two singles victories for the Bruins at the ITA Team Indoor Championships and helped UCLA earn a big consolation win over No. 19 South Carolina following two narrow defeats. Bruins have accounted for 21 all-time weekly awards. Shibahara and Hart have each garnered three.
MILLER'S MAD MARCH
The month of March belonged to Miller. The junior won all six of her singles matches and teamed with Shibahara to do the same on the doubles courts. The pair also clinched two doubles points. Miller won 72 of 86 singles games and posted four 6-0 sets over the course of the month. Dating back to Feb. 23, the Saratoga, Calif. native is 8-0 in singles play and 9-0 in doubles action.
NEWCOMER SUCCESS
Freshman Abi Altick has won nine of her last 10 decisions in singles play. She is 11-2 on the dual-match season and leads the Bruins with 25 total wins after a successful fall. The Monroe, La. native has a 4-3 record versus Top-100 players, with two losses coming to teammates Fleming and Shibahara. Her clinching win Friday at Utah marked the first of her career. Ayan Broomfield, who joined the Bruins as a transfer from Clemson in August, has clinched three Bruin victories this season. The junior topped then-No. 61 Claudia Wiktorin of North Carolina State, 6-3, 6-3, to secure UCLA's first ITA Kick-Off Weekend decision (Jan. 26). She also notched deciding wins against Kareena Manji of Saint Mary's, 6-1, 6-4 (Feb. 2), and Siobhan Anderson of LMU (Feb. 16). Altick and Broomfield have teamed to clinch three doubles points, while Broomfield has done so with Gabby Andrews twice.
UCLA IN THE RANKINGS
Five Bruins are ranked among Oracle/ITA's Top 125 singles players, announced April 10. Shibahara is tops among them, as the sophomore sits at No. 16. Hart is 37th, while Altick is at No. 52. Miller is currently ranked 113th, while Fleming is at 122. The doubles list features four Bruin tandems. The team of Hart and Fleming checks in at No. 11 to lead the way. Hart-Shibahara comes in at No. 18, while Andrews-Hart is No. 33 and Andrews-Broomfield is No. 48. UCLA is ranked No. 15 in the latest Oracle/ITA team list. The Bruins are tops among Pac-12 schools, and one of two in the Top 25 (Stanford โ No. 22). Oregon (No. 30), Arizona State (33), Washington State (37), USC (41) and California (45) are in the top 50.
SAMPRAS WEBSTER WINS NO. 400
The Bruins' two ITA Kick-Off wins in Kentucky represented a milestone for long-time UCLA head coach Stella Sampras Webster. Already the winningest coach in program history, the victories represented Nos. 399 and 400 for Sampras Webster, who now holds a record of 411-156 (.725). She has led the Bruins to two NCAA Championships in her 21 completed seasons. Her teams have also tallied four runner-up finishes. Prior to becoming head coach, Sampras Webster played four seasons at UCLA under predecessor Bill Zaima. Those teams recorded four straight NCAA top-three finishes, while she was named an All-American each of those seasons. Sampras Webster was inducted into the Southern California Tennis Association Hall of Fame in October.
OVER 100 GATHER FOR REUNION
More than 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. The group was able to see new and updated on-campus facilities, take part in a gala banquet and celebration at the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame and watch the current Bruins defeat Oregon, among other activities.
FALL BALL
Shibahara got the fall schedule started with a run to the final round of Oracle ITA Masters in September, where she finished as the runner-up in a talented field. At the Cal Fall Invitational later that month, Fleming defeated Altick for the ITA Blue singles championship, while Andrews and Wiley picked up the ITA Gold consolation title. Hart-Shibahara, meanwhile, was awarded the doubles consolation championship at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships and Andrews-Hart won the doubles title at the ITA Regional Championships. In November, Altick made a run to the final round of the Jack Kramer Collegiate Tournament, where she fell in three sets. Bruins also swept the singles (Shibahara) and doubles (Hart-Shibahara) titles at the Freeman Memorial Championships in Las Vegas.
Players Mentioned
