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USC Women’s Tennis Tackles Packed Weekend of Competition
February 22, 2018 | Women's Tennis, Features
THIS WEEK
After coming off a 5-2 win last weekend over San Diego State, the USC women's tennis team jumps into a match-filled weekend as they challenge California in a non-conference counting match on Friday (Feb. 23) and then face a double-header on Saturday (Feb. 24) against Fresno State and Long Beach State.
ORACLE/ITA RANKINGS UPDATES
In the latest Oracle/ITA Division I National Rankings which were released on Tuesday (Feb. 20), two Trojan singles players and a doubles pair lock in placement in the rankings. Senior Gabby Smith is USC's highest ranked singles player at No. 30. Smith is 16-8 on the season, with four wins agasint singles opponents in the top 14. Fellow senior Madison Westby earned placement in the rankings as she secured the No. 110 spot. Westby holds a 10-8 season record and has won four of her last seven matches. In doubles, the Trojan tandem of Angela Kulikov and Rianna Valdes hold the No. 39 position. The duo is 6-1 throughout the course of the season.
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA
The California Golden Bears are ranked No. 34 in the nation. Headlined in singles by No. 29 Anna Bright, No. 42 Olivia Hauger and No. 56 Karla Popovic, the Golden Bears are 4-1 overall. California is coming off a 5-2 victory against UC Santa Barbara on Feb. 18. The series with California, dating back to 1981, is USC's most competitive, and the Trojans lead 38-36.
SCOUTING FRESNO STATE
While the Fresno State Bulldogs are not nationally ranked, they do feature the No. 49 doubles pair Emma Wilson/Georgia Lawson. The team is 3-5 overall on the season and are coming off a big weekend of competition that mirrors the Trojans' this weekend. On Feb. 10 the Bulldogs defeated Cal Poly 6-1. They then faced a double-header of their own on Feb. 11 where they lost to St. Mary's 4-3, but then beat Santa Clara 4-3. USC holds a 17-1 all-time record over Fresno State dating back to 1989.
SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE
The Long Beach State 49'ers have not yet broken into the Oracle/ITA National Rankings and do not have any singles or doubles players in the individual rankings. They are 3-3 overall on the season. The 49'ers are coming off a 6-1 loss at home to Loyola Marymount on Wednesday (Feb. 21). In their series dating back to 1977, USC is undefeated against Long Beach State 34-0.
LIVE STATS/VIDEO
This week's matches can be viewed on the USC Playsight live stream at USCTrojans.com. Follow along on Twitter and Instagram for live in-match updates.
