Bolton Named Pac-12's Top Newcomer
May 07, 2019 | Women's Tennis
SAN FRANCISCO โ Elysia Bolton of UCLA women's tennis was named Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year and three Bruins earned All-Conference esteem, the conference announced Tuesday.
Bolton and Jada Hart were picked to the All-Pac-12 First Team, marking the first time two Bruins accomplished that feat since 2014 (Robin Anderson and Jennifer Brady). Ayan Broomfield earned All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention acclaim. With Bolton's award, five UCLA newcomers have been honored since 2012.
An all-around force on Court 2, Bolton is destined for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships in Orlando, Fla. The freshman has racked up a team-best 26 singles wins, including 10 against nationally-ranked opponents. As a result, Bolton has seen her own ranking rise, spending five weeks among the nation's top 20 players and currently sitting at No. 32. She was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on Feb. 5, after posting a clinching win on each leg of her first-career road trip. In all, the Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. native has clinched four UCLA victories. For good measure, No. 11 Bolton-Hart has tallied 28 doubles wins, including 12 in its last 13 decisions. The pair has turned in signature wins against No. 3 Emily Arbuthnott-Michaela Gordon of Stanford and No. 4 Angela Kulikov-Rianna Valdes of USC.
In addition to her doubles success with Bolton, Hart has shined in singles play. The Colton, Calif. native had five of her first six dual matches go unfinished before flourishing as the heart of the schedule was reached. From Feb. 24-April 3, Hart went 9-1 with wins against five top-50 opponents. With her latest win, against 12th-ranked Eden Richardson of LSU, Hart has topped seven nationally-ranked counterparts. For the year, the redshirt junior is 15-9 and holds a team-high 30 doubles victories.
Broomfield saved her initial All-Pac-12 honor for her second and final season in Westwood. Teaming with fellow senior Gabby Andrews, the Clemson transfer recently earned her first All-America nod. Andrews-Broomfield, 21-7 and 7-3 against nationally-ranked opponents, is the No. 4 seed in the upcoming NCAA Doubles Championships. Andrews-Broomfield has spent a majority of the dual-match season on Court 1, where it has seen its ranking sit in the top 15 for nearly the entirety of the season thus far. The Toronto native is 18-10 in singles matches on the campaign, calling Court 3 home for a majority of that time. She recently clinched UCLA's 4-3 semifinal-round win against Washington at the Pac-12 Championships.
Players Mentioned
