Friday, 4/18/97 Bruins prepare to avenge earlier losses to
Stanford UCLA closes out season with two tough matches at home
By Christie DeBeau Daily Bruin Contributor The UCLA women’s
tennis team will face tough competition this weekend when it plays
the final matches of the season at the LATC. Today, the
fifth-ranked Bruins battle No. 13 California at 1:30 p.m. and on
Saturday, the team faces second-ranked Stanford at noon. The
highlight of the weekend will be the Stanford match, when the
Bruins will seek revenge from their 6-3 loss in Palo Alto April 4.
"With Stanford being a good team, we just need to go out there and
build on what we’ve done before and and we could beat them," said
team captain Kelly Rudolph. With a high team-ranking and the No. 1
singles player in the nation, Katie Schlukebir, the Cardinal
competes at a high level. They are undefeated in the Pac-10 with an
8-0 record, and as a result, this weekend will be a chance for UCLA
to prove it can win at a high level of play. "We can play at that
level, it’s just being really consistent and disciplined," UCLA
head coach Stella Sampras said. "It’s just winning the big points
that makes the difference between a great player and a not-so-great
one. You can’t play loose points against a player or a team that
plays at (Stanford’s) level." It is going to take a team effort by
the Bruins for them to succeed against the Cardinal. Every game is
going to be important. "I think it’s going to be exciting," junior
Rudolph said. "I just hope that everyone on the team is as pumped
as I am to just go out there and give it their all because I know
that we can beat them. "Everyone is going to have to go out there
and not play their best tennis ever, but everyone is going to have
to … play great because they are such a good team and each player
is highly ranked." Although the matchup against Stanford may be the
match that is drawing the most attention, the Bruins realize that
Cal will also be difficult to beat. Earlier this month, the Bruins
(14-4 overall, 6-2 Pac-10) barely defeated the Golden Bears, 5-4.
However, this time around, UCLA will have the home-court advantage.
"I think we feel really confident going into (this week’s)
matches," Sampras said. "They are going to be tough but we have
already played them; we know what to expect so it’s just a matter
of staying focused and healthy and just playing better tennis than
they are. "We are very fired up, we are playing at home. We want to
get good support and use that home-court advantage. We are excited
because Cal will be tough and with Stanford we have nothing to lose
…" JUSTIN WARREN/Daily Bruin Kati Kocsis will help lead UCLA
Saturday.