UPCOMING MATCHES
No. 66 Denver Pioneers at No. 59 UC Irvine Anteaters
Sun. Mar. 22, 2015 / 10:00 AM
Anteater Tennis Stadium
No. 23 Dartmouth Big Green at No. 59 UC Irvine Anteaters
Mon. Mar. 23, 2015 / 11:00 AM
Anteater Tennis Stadium
No. 72 Sacramento State Hornets at No. 59 UC Irvine Anteaters
Wed. Mar. 25, 2015 / 11:00 AM
Anteater Tennis Stadium
ACES AND FAULTS
The Anteaters have hit a rare losing streak falling to Long Beach State and Gonzaga in consecutive weeks.
Kat Facey has not been phased not sitting at 13-0 in singles play. She is tied for 21st all-time alongside Darian Chappell with 45 singles wins, and captured Big West Player of the Week awards in consecutive weeks. She also emerged in the top 10 at No. 3 singles winning her 13th at the position.
Ali Facey is just three doubles wins away from the 50-win plateau. She ranks fifth all-time with 22 wins as the No. 1 doubles duo, and also has posted 20 wins at No. 4 singles, second all-time.
Overall, the Anteaters have hit 100 singles wins between fall and dual match play. Five 'Eaters have 10 or more wins led by Kat Facey's 19.
UCI has earned 42 dual match victories, and besides Facey at No. 3 singles, only No. 6 singles has a winning mark this season at 8-6.
RANKINGS ROULETTE
UCI's yo-yo up and down the rankings leaves it at No. 59 this week.
Three Anteater opponents enter the rankings this week. San Francisco jumped all the way to No. 51. USF took out the 'Eaters, 4-3, earlier this season. UCI's last opponent, Gonzaga, also earned a ranking at No. 75.
UC Santa Barbara is the third opponent now at No. 70. UCI and UCSB meet up in early April.
Remaining in the rankings are No. 23 Dartmouth, No. 33 Fresno State, No. 62 Marshall, No. 66 Denver, No. 67 SDSU, No. 71 Hawai'i, and No. 72 Sacramento State.
The 'Eaters began the season with three ranked singles on their agenda; that list is currently at four.
The lone Big West individual is No. 68 Cindy Nguyen who defeated Sarah Gong in their meeting in February. UCI will face one this week in No. 94 Taylor Ng of Dartmouth.
SPRING SELECTIONS
Lots to look forward to coming out of the fall slate. With a good mix of veterans and newcomers, the 'Eaters went 53-44 in singles matches led by Sarah Gong. Her 8-1 mark included winning the SDSU Invite Red Flight, consolation title at the ITA West Regionals, and an upset of No. 13 Michaela Cappanolo from Pepperdine. Andrea Duva also put up eight singles wins while newcomers Cassidy Branstine and Alex Harrigan impressed with six each.
HIGH SOCIETY
UC Irvine gets thrown right into the fire over spring break with three ranked opponents in Anteater Tennis Stadium.
Denver comes in Sunday ranked No. 66 in the nation with a 6-5 mark. Notable wins against BYU, Wyoming, and Boise State are coupled with losses to New Mexico, Nebraska, and Wichita State.
The Pioneers come out very young with just two upperclassmen in the lineup. Sophomores Maureen Slattery and Sonja Radosevic run the show at Nos. 1 and 2 singles while freshman Julia O'Loughlin has made plenty of noise at No. 3 singles and No. 1 doubles alongside Slattery.
The Dartmouth Big Green have not been stopped this season, a perfect 11-0 to take them to a No. 23 ranking. Its ranked wins include Columbia, Minnesota, and Mississippi State. The Big Green take on No. 31 Long Beach State and No. 66 Denver before venturing to Irvine on Monday.
Dartmouth's workhorse is Taylor Ng, 8-0 at No. 1 singles where she is ranked No. 94 in the nation, and 6-1 at No. 1 doubles . Outside of Ng, Dartmouth is still 29-8 in singles play including a 7-0 mark at No. 3 singles, a slot where UCI is currently 13-0.
UCI wraps up on Wednesday against No. 72 Sacramento State. The Hornets are 9-7 with wins over UC Davis, USD, UCSB, and handing Long Beach State its only loss. Sac State has also been tripped up by San Francisco, San Jose State, and Fresno State.
Sophomore Alina Soltanici leads the charge for the Hornets. She began the year ranked No. 51, but has since falling out of the rankings with a No. 1 singles record of 7-8.
Sac State has also had a lot of success from freshman Ana Loaiza Esquivias going 10-4 thus far.
The Hornets have struggled in doubles going just 18-24 in dual match play.
The team hosts a doubleheader and travels to San Diego State before arriving in Irvine on Wednesday.
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