Academy of Art

San Francisco, CA – The Academy of Art University’s women’s tennis team recently concluded their second season of play. After the University was accepted into the NCAA last summer, this season marked the first official season the women were able to compete in a full Pacific West Conference schedule. The Urban Knights came along way in just two years and were able to compete against some of the top Division II teams in the Nation. One thing is for sure for this young team, they made a name for themselves in the conference.

“I was really proud of how we handle ourselves,” said Head Coach Dave Allen. “This team is really building.... our practice has been very steady, but the way that we competed was even better. We had a few new players this year, which changed the dynamics of our line up. This didn't rattle anyone’s cage. We picked up from where we left off last year and worked together as a true TEAM.”

Although the women dropped their first game of the season to a top nationally ranked team, Sonoma State, they came back with a big win in their second match. In their first PacWest meeting of the year, the Knights shut out Notre Dame de Namur University with a 9-0 victory. The Urban Knights then hit a slow mark in their season. The team played well, but faced tough competition, and was barely edged out by their opponents. The women would win one game with seven losses through the remainder of February, with the win coming against Montana State University Billings with a score of 6-3.

AAU bounced back for the remainder of the season, and their hard work really paid off. When the Knights started conference play again, they came up big with impressive wins over Dixie State, and Dominican University. The Urban Knights defeated Dixie with a score of 5-4, then swept Dominican winning with scores of 9-0 in both games of the double header.

The women then headed to Hawaii to play BYU Hawaii followed by the most difficult tournament of their season, the Aqua tournament, in which they faced Hawaii Hilo, Chaminade University and Hawaii Pacific University. The Knights played their hearts out but unfortunately were not able to defeat any of those teams. “It is always going to be difficult competing against BYU [Hawaii] the #1 team in the Nation,” said Coach Allen, “but when we walk on the court we look as it as, ‘Somebody is going to win, and somebody is going to lose.’ Let's go out there and put it on the line with a smile on our face and get it on!" The women, however, came right back from the tournament and were able to go on a three game winning streak heading into PacWest Championship play. The Knights defeated Notre Dame de Namur and Dominican (whom they played in a double header), with scores of 9-0, 5-0, and 5-0 respectively.

For their last games of the season, the Urban Knights headed to Glendale Arizona to participate in the Pacific West Conference Championships. After dropping the first game to Hawaii Pacific, the women rallied back to capture two impressive wins. They defeated Hawaii Hilo 5-4 and Grand Canyon University 5-4, both teams that had won over AAU earlier in the season. After those final two wins, the women were able to capture 5^th place in the PacWest Conference creating a new found respect for themselves. The women had an outstanding 5-1 record in the month of April.

“Our plan was to finish in the top 6 in our Conference. We finished 5^th. I was really excited with how everyone began our season..... But the real measure was how we finished the season. That is what I will remember most. We ended the year beating every team that beat us during the regular season. We won when it counted the most. That took guts, especially with a hostile crowd at the fences. We have established very quickly that we belong at the top of our Conference,” added Coach Dave Allen.

Junior Laone "Lala" Botshoma finished the season with a solid record of 15-7 overall and was on a five game winning streak at the end of the year. “La-La has this very rare ability to actually play better when the pressure is on!” exclaimed Coach Allen. “I love it. And I am inspired by it. She is this sweet little thing.... until you get her on the court in a match.” In doubles, Laone finished 13-10. Sophomore Maria "Belen" Tenorio also stood out in the season finishing with an overall record of 11-9.

Freshman newcomer Diane Phan had a breakout season as she ended with a doubles record of 11-10, and an overall record of 9-12. When Phan and Botshoma combined for doubles play, they led the team and finished with a 10-10 record as a pair.

“The success of this young team goes out to all of them,” commented Coach Allen. “Great discipline, great work ethic, and great positive energy every day. We are going to continue to build on that next year too. I am so happy for these girls. They will be able to look back on this for the rest of their lives knowing they were the first, the first players of the Urban Knights athletic department. I look forward to see what we accomplish next year...... It is looking GOOD!”

Each player grew and learned this season and made huge strides towards the future. They played their hearts out and it showed in their play and records. As a team, they finished 10-13 overall. With two years now under their belts, and a new deserved conference respect, they are ready to make even more of an impact in years to come.