ART U @ Sonoma State
Saturday, February 5th at 12:00 pm
Sonoma, CA
Ready for action: After their hard work and a successful fall season, the Academy of Art University's women's tennis team is ready to begin their 2011 season. They get things going with a match against Sonoma State on Saturday, February 5th.
Knights to watch: The Knights graduated just one senior last season and have added three new players to the roster for 2011. The team returns Diane Phan, who was named PacWest Freshman of the Year in 2010. Phan, along with Laone "Lala" Botshoma who finished with a 15-7 overall record, will be looked upon to lead the team again this season.
Pre-Season recap: ART U put up some great scores in their fall tournaments just a few months ago. Based on how the team finished, Academy of Art University heads into the start of their spring season ranked No. 45 in the nation. ART U is also listed as No. 7 in the ITA West Regional Poll, seated two spots better than their upcoming opponents, Sonoma State.
Scouting Sonoma State University: The Seawolves have done well for themselves over the past couple of years. Last year they began the season ranked in the top 40 nationally, and finished with a 10-10 overall record. They head into the 2011 season ranked 9th in the ITA West Regional Poll. The SeaWolves actually began their official spring season on January 28th, and were defeated by Fresno Pacific. They will play one match on February 4th before hosting ART U the following day. SSU lost several players after last season, including their number one singles player. This year they will look upon senior Haley Hickock to help lead the team. Hickock finished the 2010 season with a 10-11 singles record. Juniors Stephanie Hoffmire and Geri Richards are also expected to put up good numbers as they finished 2010 with 13-9 and 2-0 records respectively. Last year when the two teams faced each other, Sonoma State came away with the victory.
Looking ahead: The Urban Knights will continue on the road for their next contest. They head to Glendale, AZ to participate in the Paseo Tournament starting on April 9th.
