Season Preview
The women welcome five new faces to their roster and return five starters and with a good balance of youth, talent, and experience they are looking for another successful season. Head Coach Jamie Sanchez said, “We are looking forward to stepping out on the courts this season. Each match will prepare us for the next one. Our goals for the season are about getting better every single day, so we can be in a position to win championships” The women will be lead by the combined forces of three seniors this season, Estelle LaPorte, Shauna Morgan, and Melissa Valenzuela. LaPorte returns for her senior season after earning a Honorable Mention for singles at the conference tournament last spring. After being injured for a portion of the 2010 season, senior Shuana Morgan comes back ready for competition and is a force in both singles and doubles. Finally senior Melissa Valenzuela will also provide experience in both singles and doubles for the Lions. The Lions will also look to junior Elisaveta Pironkova and RS freshman Adriana Radinovic as versatile players across the board. The Lions welcome five new comers to their roster including transfer from University of Washington Ashley Anderson, transfer from UC Irvine April Bisharat, and freshmen Miya Jin, Claudia Razzeto, and Reka Rohonyi. Already these fresh faces have had a competitive impact in the fall preseason tournaments for the Lions and have a lot of potential to continue contributing throughout the spring. The Lions once again face a tough schedule beyond just their West Coast Conference opponents. The women will face top ranked programs such as Georgetown, Columbia, UCSB, UCLA and Arizona. Additionally the women will travel to Hawaii over the spring break to play University of Hawaii and Hawaii-Pacific University. Finally they will conclude their spring season with the West Coast Conference Tournament in San Diego, Calif. at the Barnes Tennis Center April 21st through the 23rd. Head Coach Jamie Sanchez said, “Through the course of the season, we will face 9 Division I top ranked opponents starting with our neighbor UCLA at #5 and a very much improved and competitive west Coast Conference schedule. We are looking forward to the battle ahead that leads to the WCC Tennis Championship and entry into the National Championship Tournament.”
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