Chi, Phebus top charts for No. 6 w. tennis

Chi, Phebus top charts for No. 6 w. tennis

By Chris Isidro

The UCLA women’s tennis team has several things going for it as
it prepares for the NCAA Championships beginning May 12 in
Malibu.

* The Bruins (14-8) are ranked sixth in the latest polls.

* Junior Keri Phebus continued her torrid play taking the Pac-10
Championship despite an injured knee.

* UCLA has a firm grip of the individual rankings with Jane Chi
regaining the top spot and Phebus holding steady at No. 2. The
doubles tandem of Phebus and Susie Starrett are ranked second in
the national listings released on Thursday.

Not bad for a squad that staggered down the home stretch with
six losses. But an early March rainstorm, which postponed UCLA’s
match against Pepperdine (14-9), gives the Bruins a chance to wash
out their recent woes.

UCLA heads to Malibu today to make up that earlier match.
Although their meeting will have no bearing on the NCAAs, the
Bruins don’t mind the extra work. It will be their first
opportunity to play with a full lineup since early April, when the
Bruins lost several key players to injury.

"We would like to enter the tournament with a win," UCLA head
coach Bill Zaima expressed. "And it’s also a chance to get used to
the courts in Malibu."

For the 18th-ranked Waves, Friday’s match caps off a grueling
campaign which included matches against No. 3 Stanford, No. 4 Texas
and No. 5 California.

"We played a difficult schedule this year, probably the toughest
in school history," Pepperdine head coach Gualberto Escudero said.
"Playing top-ranked competition has better prepared our team for
the rigors of the tournament."