Women's Tennis Remains Optimistic Despite Struggles Against Top Teams
By Tamara Zakim
Sports Editor

Over the past two weeks, Pomona-Pitzer women's tennis has faced a diverse array of ranked and unranked opponents; two wins and three losses later, the team remains in the NCAA running with upcoming SCIAC tournament play ultimately determining whether or not the Sagehens will earn a trip to NCAA Regionals.

Two Fridays ago, the Hens had a strong showing against SCIAC opponent Occidental College. Despite what Coach Anne Lebedeff described as a talented Oxy roster, Pomona-Pitzer handed the Tigers a sound 8-1 defeat, riding on the strength of their doubles pairs.

Over the following weekend, the Hens participated in the two-day Cal Poly Pomona Tournament, with matches against Cal State Los Angeles and top-ranked University of Northern Colorado. CSULA, a Division II program with scholarship players, only managed to narrowly beat the Hens by a score of 5-4. In doubles play, number one pair Whitney Henderson '04 and Kelli Howard '04, and number two pair Betsy Mork '04 and Lauren Calton '06, dominated their opponents without difficulty. At number three, Kelsey Chance '05 and Vicki Chen '04 lost in a tight 8-6 match. Going into the singles, both number one Howard and number two Henderson were unable to pull out wins. Chen and Calton secured wins at four and six, and Chance nabbed a victory at five by winning her third set, 6-4. Mork battled at number three in a grueling four and a half hour match, only to lose 9-7 after a tie-breaker in the third set.

Pomona-Pitzer pulled out a solid win over Northern Colorado in the following day of competition, despite the inevitable fatigue and injury resulting from consecutive days of play.

"We've won and lost a lot of 5-4 matches," said Lebedeff, "but these kids never give up. We're often overmatched either athletically or by experience, but we always show up and compete." With top player Henderson sitting the sidelines due to an aggravated hip flexor in the previous day's events, the Hens nevertheless seized a solid 6-3 victory in Sunday's match-up.

Pomona-Pitzer entered singles play up 2-1 after doubles, having lost the number one and won two and three. Howard secured a win at number one singles, and Mork, playing in Henderson's absence, won easily at number two. "Betsy has been playing well for us," remarked Lebedeff. "Her game has really picked up." Exceptional wins at four and six compensated for losses at three and five. Chance came back to win in her third set at number four, and Kim Brettshneider '04, who moved up to play number six for her first time on the team, pulled out a 6-2, 6-2 win to give the Hens a final 6-3 advantage over Northern Colorado.

General optimism and Henderson's return to the courts were not enough to carry the Sagehens over nationally ranked number three Trinity (Texas) and top conference team California Lutheran, however. In last Friday's home face-off, Pomona-Pitzer fell 6-3 to Trinity. 8-6 losses in all three doubles matches proved costly for a team that often depends on strong doubles performances. Though Howard, Henderson, and Mork won their singles matches at numbers one, two and three respectively, Sagehen losses at four, five, and six ultimately sealed the victory for Trinity. "Trinity's always had the edge over us," explained Lebedeff, "especially because they've been dominant in the rankings for so many years."

The Sagehens also suffered a disappointing 6-3 defeat to Cal Lutheran. Despite close competition in the number one and number two doubles matches (with finals scores of 8-4, and 8-6), only number three pair Chen and Chance were able to win their doubles match for Pomona-Pitzer, 8-1. Down 1-2, the Sagehens hardly fared any better entering the singles. Howard earned a win at number one in three sets, 4-6, 6-2, and 6-1, and Mork was the only other Hen to find success, also winning her match in three tight sets, 6-3, 3-6, and 6-2. The loss puts Pomona-Pitzer at third place in the conference behind Cal Lu and Redlands as they face SCIAC tournament play this week.

Though the Hens had hoped for at least one win last weekend, they are not discouraged by their current third place ranking in the league. "The kids are positive," Lebedeff asserted. "As a coach, when I look at where we started as compared to where we are now, I really am proud of how much they've improved and come together as a team. The most crucial thing is how hard we work."

Pomona-Pitzer's performance at the SCIAC tournament will determine the final conference standings, and with the top five teams in the West guaranteed berths at Regionals, the Hens remain confident that they'll be heading to the first round of NCAA playoffs. Trinity, Cal Lu, Redlands, and CMS are the other top teams in the region. "We're pretty certain we'll be able to go," commented Henderson. The Hens do not need any spectacular performances this week to earn the trip to Regionals; unless they suffer an unexpectedly lopsided loss, it is virtually guaranteed that the team will remain within the top five ranking. "It would be nice to have a higher ranking going in, but ultimately, it makes no difference. It's whoever wins that gets to go onto Nationals," explained Henderson.

In late-breaking news, announcements have recently hit the wire that Lebedeff has been appointed head coach for the 2003 Intercollegiate Tennis Association American All-Star Team. Waseda University in Japan asked the American Tennis Association, of which Lebedeff is a high-standing member, to compile a team of top American college tennis players for a tournament against their university team at their campus in mid-June. Lebedeff will be coaching the women's team, composed of five All-American players from UCLA, Cal Berkeley, USC, Emory and Tyler Junior College. These players were chosen to represent American tennis after a rigorous and extremely selective three month process. Lebedeff herself was chosen by an equally selective process ultimately decided in a vote by the ATA Board of Directors. Bobby Bayless, head coach at Notre Dame, has been elected to lead the men's All-Star Team.The trip to Japan is entirely funded by Waseda University, and is highlighted by a two-day tournament in a 5000-person capacity stadium, which is expected to sell out.

"It's a big honor," says Lebedeff about the coaching nomination. "I've had other national level coaching positions but with the way relations are going on in the world now, it's very exciting to represent the U.S. in an international competition."