COIN TOSS: With two Big West matches under their belt, the Aggies take a break from conference play to host Saint Mary's and Santa Clara at the Marya Welch Tennis Center. Both matches are slated for 1:30 PM on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.
NEXT UP…
UC DAVIS (4-2) vs. SAINT MARY'S (0-2)
WHEN: Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020 at 1:30 PM
WHERE: Marya Welch Tennis Center in Davis, Calif.
LIVE SCORING: https://static.ucdavisaggies.com/custompages/stats/wten/2019_20/livescores/07SMC/xlive.htm
UC DAVIS (4-2) vs. SANTA CLARA (0-2)
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020 at 1:30 PM
WHERE: Marya Welch Tennis Center in Davis, Calif.
LIVE SCORING: https://static.ucdavisaggies.com/custompages/stats/wten/2019_20/livescores/08SCU/xlive.htm
FOLLOW THE AGGIES: Fans can see behind the scenes of UC Davis women's tennis by following them on their social media accounts. Like or follow on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook at @ucdaviswtennis.
ABOUT THE GAELS: Saint Mary's comes to Davis after dropping matches to two top-20 teams in No. 4 UCLA and No. 19 USC. Junior Mariia Kozyreva leads the Gaels with a No. 15 ranking after reaching the final of the ITA Northwest Regional in the fall, and winning the consolation bracket at the ITA Fall Championships with five straight singles wins, including three ranked opponents. The Gaels have yet to win a singles or doubles match, but have had very competitive results considering the opponents. Against the Women of Troy, Chloe Goyette/Jordan Harris were in a tiebreaker at 6-6 on court two when their match was suspended after a 7-5 No. 3 result. In singles, newcomer Lene Mari Hovda had just won the first set in a tiebreaker at No. 3, Gabriela Tevez was leading 7-6(2), 2-4 at No. 5, and Liesl Pieters had just begun the second set when the match was clinched.
SERIES NOTES: The Aggies are 0-3 in the Division I era against the Gaels, playing every year since the 2016-17 season. Last season, Kristina Breisacher recorded the only point with a third set tiebreak win over Jordan Harris at No. 4.
ABOUT THE BRONCOS: The Broncos fell in their opening matches at the Degheri Tennis Center to Cal Poly (1-6), and Nevada (2-4). Maddie Pothoff returns at the top of the singles lineup in her senior year, and won both matches thus far in the dual season, defeating Susanne Boyden (Cal Poly) in three, and Anastasia Luneva (Nevada) in straight sets. Pothoff and Jamie Schroer each have a team-high seven singles wins on the season. Santa Clara has debuted nearly 20 different doubles pairings throughout the year, with Pothoff leading with a 12-3 record from three separate partners.
SERIES NOTES: Santa Clara leads the Division I series record 6-4, with UC Davis winning two of the last three meetings.
DOUBLE YOUR TENNIS, DOUBLE YOUR FUN: UC Davis is slated for a full day of tennis on Saturday, Feb. 8, with the men hosting Saint Mary's at 10:30 AM, and the women hosting Santa Clara at 1:30 PM in a doubleheader at the Marya Welch Tennis Center. This is one of just two opportunities to catch both teams in action on the same day, with the second occurring on the last Friday of the regular season on April 17.
BEST IN THE BIG WEST: Senior Kristina Breisacher earned her first career Big West Athlete of the Week honor after leading the Aggies to a 2-1 weekend in the Pacific Northwest. The senior recorded wins in singles and doubles against Portland to edge the Pilots in a 4-3 victory, and was the last off the court in battles against Pac-12 foe Oregon.
TERRIFIC TOP THREE: Last season's top three players from the singles lineup are returning for 2020, who put up a combined 40 singles wins out of the team's 62 total wins. Juniors Shirley Hall and Sara Tsukamoto led the team with 15 and 13 singles wins, respectively, closely followed by senior Nikita Pradeep at 12 to be the only three players to reach double-digit wins.
BAGELS FOR BREAKFAST: The Aggies put up a dominant win over Sonoma State in their season opener, defeating the Seawolves 7-0. In doubles, Shirley Hall and Kristina Breisacher teamed at No. 2 to deliver the first 6-0 set — one of four on the day. In singles play, Hall claimed her opening set 6-0, dropped her first three games of the second set before coming from behind to essentially win the second set 6-0. Lauren Ko never looked back in singles, winning her first career 6-0, 6-0 match to be the first Aggie off the court.
BAGELS FOR LUNCH TOO? Competing against Division III opponent Puget Sound, the Aggies recorded two 6-0 wins in doubles at Nos. 2-3, and at least one 6-0 set in each match for nine total on the day — including three double-bagel wins from Sara Tsukamoto (No.1), Lauren Ko (No. 4), and Jessica Walker (No. 6).
TWO BROOMS ARE BETTER THAN ONE: Midway through their three-match roadswing through the Pacific Northwest, the Aggies put up their second sweep of the season in a neutral-site victory over Puget Sound. This is the first time since 2017 that the Aggies swept two opponents — that team went on to post the program's best Big West record and earn the No. 2 seed at the Big West Conference tournament. One more 7-0 victory will match the 2016 squad that blanked three teams.
PROGRAM FIRST: Starting off the fall tournament season in fashion, junior Sara Tsukamoto and freshman Lauren Ko posted the program's first doubles match win over a nationally-ranked team in UC Davis' Division I history. The duo defeated Saint Mary's Danielle McIntyre and Mariia Kozyreva at the Cal Invite, who were ranked No. 48 at the time.
A LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: Head coach Bill Maze enters his 25th year at the helm of UC Davis, and is approaching the 300-win mark during his tenure with the Aggies. Maze has coached the Aggies through the Division I transition, and compiled a 285-249 UC Davis record. Considering his five-year stint as the head coach of Pacific, Maze is well over the 300 dual match win threshold — entering into a league of legends.
ON THE ROAD… A LOT: The Aggies are slated for 11 road matches this spring. Which means chances are limited to just 10 days to watch UC Davis women's tennis at the Marya Welch Tennis Center.
ABOUT UC DAVIS
Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education, offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.
MARYA WELCH INITIATIVE
Named after the former physical education instructor, coach and Dean of Women who founded women's sports on the campus 25 years before the passage of Title IX, the Marya Welch Initiative for Women's Athletics provides comprehensive support for UC Davis' 16 athletics programs.
Through the support of the Marya Welch Initiative and its group members, student-athletes are provided the best possible opportunity to succeed inside the classroom, and in competition, through special project gifts and by increasing visibility and participation at women's events throughout the year.
All gifts to the Marya Welch Initiative are matched 1:1, doubling the impact on our women's programs.
To learn more about projects the Marya Welch Initiative is currently funding, like the Marya Welch Initiative on Facebook. Join this groundbreaking program by clicking here, contacting Assistant AD for Leadership Giving and Alumni Engagement Liz Martin at (530) 752-7326 or emartin@ucdavis.edu.
AGGIE EVO
Established during the 2017-18 academic year, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.
