Jen Iso
Sports Assistant
The Pepperdine women’s tennis team worked hard all season to claim a spot in the NCAA Championship and to be named one of the top teams in the nation. Starting with a No.-28 ranking in January, the team served their way to a national rank of No. 6.
The team was eliminated from the NCAA regional playoffs held at Pepperdine.
With a ranking at number 13 after the regular season, the team earned the right to host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Championships on their home turf at the Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center alongside the No.-2 Pepperdine men’s tennis team.
Wichita State came prepared, but the Waves were ready to win. Both doubles teams, senior Natalie Braverman and junior Caroline Raba along with junior Eva Dickes and sophomore Bianca Dulgheru, defeated the Shockers’ women. The singles players continued the streak as Braverman, sophomore Syliva Kosakowski and Dickes conquered their opponents.
The Waves improved their record to 21-3 while the Shockers ended their season 17-8. “We were ready to play them, and we won,” Dulgheru said.
The women knew the second-round would be a challenge. The UCLA Bruins were ready for revenge.”We knew we had a tough match,” Head Coach Gualberto Escudero said. “The first time we played them, we beat them by one point.”
No.-19 UCLA came out strong in the second round, claiming points from doubles teams senior Merve Asimgil and Kosakowski as well as Braverman and Raba. Unfortunately, Dulgheru and Dickes, who were defeating their opponents 6-2, were forced to stop. “In sports you never know,” Dulgheru said. “It happens.”
The Bruins captured the singles points as well, beating Raba, Dickes and Asimgil. Play came to a halt while Dulgheru was up in her match and Braverman was fighting hard in a second-set tiebreaker.
“It was a well-fought match, but we came up short,” Escudero said. “It was a sad ending to a good season.”
The Waves finished with a 21-4 record while the 15-6 Bruins moved to play in the Sweet 16 at Stanford University.
“We worked our tails off all season,” sophomore Vanessa Dunlap said. “It felt great to make it as far as we did.”
Despite their fall to UCLA in the second round of the NCAA Championships, the women have reasons to be proud. Head Coach Gualberto Escudero was named the West Coast Conference’s Co-Coach of the Year and Intercollegiate Tennis Association West Region Women’s Tennis Coach of the Year. This is Escudero’s 29th season with the Waves and the women feel this honor is well deserved. “He is different from other coaches,” Dulgheru said. “He understands us as people first, not as players.”
Escudero refused to take all the credit. “Our assistant coach, Cintia Tortorella, has been a great help,” he said. “She is knowledgeable and helpful.”
Dulgheru, who was named Freshmen of the Year last year, was excited to be named this year’s Player of the Year by the WCC. She will be traveling to Stanford University for nationals May 18-29, alongside two doubles teams.
Last year, with a relatively new team full of freshmen, the women’s tennis team needed to assimilate if they wanted to succeed.
“It took one year to get used to each other,” Dulgheru said. We got to know each other better. When you know your teammate, you can help her.”
That is just what the women did. Team camaraderie, self-discipline and late-night practices together on the court paid off.
“Being a student and an athlete at the same time is really hard,” Dulgheru said. “You want to do well in school but you don’t want to let your team down.”
Overtime and consistent practice and discipline earned the Waves a spot in the Top 10, claiming the No.-6 spot, something that had not been accomplished since 2001.
“It seemed like we had a long way to go,” Escudero said. “The team kept playing consistently. They beat UCLA and Baylor and shot up to the Top 10.”
Although the team suffered from injuries, the Waves have accomplished their goal: to make it to the Top 10. “Unfortunately the injuries throughout the year take their toll toward the end of the season,” Escudero said. “Overall I have to feel very good because we played competitively and the team will be encouraged with their higher ranking.”
06-01-2006
