Pumped by wins, team takes on UCI
By Daily Bruin Staff
Jan. 29, 2002 9:00 p.m.
 MARY HOLSCHER Sophomore tennis player Lauren
Fisher attempts to slam the ball cross-court against LMU
Friday.
By Brian Kiley
Daily Bruin Contributor
Last weekend the Bruins proved that they are for real. With two
wins, including a 6-1 drubbing of No. 24 Pepperdine Saturday, No.
16 UCLA (2-0) made it very clear that they are a force to be
reckoned with this season.
“(The team’s performance over the weekend) sends a
message of how strong this team is,” head coach Stella
Sampras said. “It shows how much this team believes that they
are a great team.”
The Bruins will carry the momentum gained from their strong
start into their match against UC Irvine today the Los Angeles
Tennis Center. UCI, which finished ninth in the Big West last year,
is coming off of a 7-0 loss to No. 7 USC last Thursday. The
Anteaters feature three-time All-Big West first team selection
Jonni Seymour, who is currently ranked No. 61 in the country.
“(UCI) will come out ready to play,” Sampras said.
“They’ve got a very good coach who will get them ready,
and hopefully we’ll do the same and dominate from the
start.”
Looming over the Bruins is Friday’s showdown against USC,
but the players know they have to take care of business against
Irvine before they can think about their cross-town rivals.
“I remember last year when we played UCI, it almost seemed
like we were taking them a little too lightly,” sophomore
Mariko Fritz-Krockow said of UCLA’s 6-1 win a year
ago. “I know that’s not what we’re going to
do this year because we are really concentrating on (today’s)
match.”
Senior Petya Marinova, who retired in the third set of her match
against Pepperdine with a slight hamstring strain, is expected to
be ready to play today. Sophomore Lauren Fisher, however, is
questionable for today’s match due to tendinitis in her right
elbow.
The rest of the team is healthy and confident that they will be
able to play their best today.
“We’re feeling good,” senior Catherine Hawley
said. “We’re trying to take care of our bodies and
we’re looking forward to the upcoming matches.”
