By Hailey Amato
Staff Writer
“If you can stay close with a good team, you can eventually beat them.”
The words of women’s tennis Head Coach Gualberto Escudero will hopefully ring true, but only time will tell.
The Waves, riding a three-match winning streak, made the 30-minute drive to the Los Angeles Tennis Center in Westwood this past weekend to take on UCLA. The team fell to the No. 7 ranked Bruins 6-1.
The loss dropped Pepperdine, now ranked 35th nationally, to 3-1 on the season. UCLA moved to 2-0.
“I think it was a lot closer than the scores portrayed,” freshman Natalie Braverman said. “Next time we play it can go our way. We competed well as a team. It was really our first challenge, but it won’t be our last.”
The Waves’ lone point came from sophomore Karin Schlapbach in the No. 6 singles spot. She won her matches in 6-4, 7-5.
The Bruins dominated all three doubles matches.
“They really got us in doubles,” Braverman said. “Doubles kind of sets a feeling for what might happen in the rest of the matches. Wins in doubles really give you confidence.”
Monika Horvath was knocked off in the No. 1 singles position by UCLA’s Sara Walker in 6-4, 6-2.
There were hard-fought matches across the court, matches that did not go in Pepperdine’s favor.
“We kind of ended the season last year on this note, coming close to some very talented teams,” Escudero said. “This year it’s at the beginning of the season so that is a good sign. We see a future of being a contending top team.”
Freshman Merve Asimgal and junior Charlotte Vernaz both took their first set, but lost their matches.
“Merve is settling down, beginning to show that she has a big game of tennis,” Escudero said. “She is a strong player with a good attitude and that is the recipe to do well.”
UCLA is a huge name in tennis, but Pepperdine did well, Vernaz said.
“UCLA was a good team, a little better than us in every spot, but not that much better,” Escudero said. “They will probably keep their top 10 ranking. If we stay close to them, we’re staying close to the top teams in the nation.”
The Waves match up against the Bruins again Feb. 14.
“We were all fighting really hard,” Schlapbach said. “There are many small things to improve. We have a game against them in two weeks and we know what we have to fix. We really saw a big improvement from the first three matches of the season.”
They are using the loss as a learning experience to help set an agenda of things to work on, Vernaz said.
“I think we have to come back on the court as a team,” Vernaz said. “We know we are good enough. UCLA was a loss, a loss that made us learn.”
Pepperdine’s next match is Friday at 1:30, when the Waves host California State University Northridge.
January 30, 2003