ON TAP IN WAC WOMEN’S TENNIS ? This week, four of nine WAC schools are in action, with two schools set to kick off their spring schedules for the first time. No. 14 Fresno State welcomes WAC foe No. 66 Nevada on Jan. 27. Louisiana Tech will make its 2008 debut when it travels to Beaumont, Texas to take on Lamar on Jan. 26, before heading to Prairie View to square off with Prairie View A&M on Jan. 27. New Mexico State opens its spring season on a three-match road trip in Las Vegas, Nev., taking on Weber State, UNLV and Pacific. No. 44 Boise State, Idaho, San Jose State and Utah State will all have nearly two weeks off before returning to competition the first week of February.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? Fresno State’s Melanie Gloria has been named the Western Athletic Conference Tennis Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 14-20. This is the sixth career Player of the Week honor for Gloria, winning twice as a freshman and three times her sophomore season.
Gloria, a junior from Montreal, Canada (Georges-Vanier), performed brilliantly during the Cal Winter Invitational in Berkeley, Calif., Jan. 18-20, finishing perfect in both singles and doubles. Gloria beat former NCAA Champion and current No. 10 Susie Babos of Cal in straight sets (6-3, 6-3) and then topped Nevada’s No. 48 Maria Mizyuk, also in straight sets (6-0, 6-1). In doubles, Gloria and teammate Tinesta Rowe, currently ranked No.1, went 3-0, including wins over ranked opponents, No. 32 Caroline Bailly and Maria Mizyuk of Nevada (8-6) and No. 36 Susie Babos and Stephanie Kusano of Cal (9-7).
Other nominees included: Sophie Kobuch of Hawai’i led the Rainbow Wahine at the Hawai’i Invitational, finishing 2-1 in singles and a perfect 3-0 in doubles play. Kobuch defeated No. 16 Katie Rybakova of 19th-ranked Florida State (6-4, 0-6, 6-1) and Alabama’s Tiffany Welcher (6-3, 6-2), and also paired up with teammate Chloe Bihag at the No. 1 doubles position to defeat Zheltova and Jarlkaganova of No. 56 Sacramento State, 9-8 (2), No. 19 Florida State’s Walter and Rybakova (9-7) and Ardie and Simpson of No. 72 Washington (8-4).
FRESNO STATE SOLID AT CAL WINTER INVITATIONAL ? The No. 14 Fresno State Bulldogs were nearly perfect on the first day of the Cal Winter Invitational in Berkeley, Calif., sweeping three doubles matches against WAC foe Nevada and winning seven of eight singles matches versus Saint Mary’s. Juniors Melanie Gloria and Tinesta Rowe faced Nevada’s Caroline Bailly and Maria Mizyuk in their first match as the nation’s No. 1 doubles tandem. Gloria and Rowe downed the No. 32-ranked Wolf Pack duo, 8-6, improving to 10-2 on the season as a pair.
Gloria and Rowe continued their success throughout the weekend, going a perfect 3-0 in both singles and doubles. The No. 1-ranked pair defeated No. 36 Susie Babos and Stephanie Kusaso of Cal, 9-7. Gloria finished the weekend beating No. 48 Maria Mizyuk of Nevada in straight sets (6-0, 6-1), improving to 8-3 overall and moving into a tie for 11th all-time in Fresno State history for career singles wins with 66. Rowe improved to 12-3 overall after finishing the weekend with three straight victories.
HAWAI?I’S KOBUCH EARNS BIG WINS IN HAWAI?I INVITATIONAL ? Rainbow Wahine sophomore Sophie Kobuch earned an impressive victory over Florida State’s Katie Rybakova, who is ranked No. 16 and had won seven of her last eight matches prior to facing Kobuch. The Hawai?i sophomore then won her fourth-straight singles match when she defeated Alabama’s top Tiffany Welcher, 6-3, 6-2.
VANDALS SWEEP LEWIS-CLARK STATE COLLEGE ? The Idaho Vandals swept Lewis-Clark State College, 7-0, on Jan. 20, earning their first victory of 2008. In singles action, the Vandals took home victories in all six matches, all in straight sets.
NEVADA’S MIZYUK PULLS OFF BIG UPSET AT CAL WINTER INVITATIONAL ? Nevada sophomore Maria Mizyuk started off the spring season with a bang at the Cal Winter Invitational on Jan. 18. The No. 48-ranked Mizyuk knocked off Cal’s Susie Babos, the 10th-ranked player in the country, in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2.
UTAH STATE BATTLED NO. 28 BYU IN SEASON OPENER ? The Aggies of Utah State were shutout in Provo, Utah, by No 28 BYU on Jan. 19. Sophomore Britney Watts fell, 6-3, 6-2, to Chie Hayasaka in singles, but was the only match that an Aggie scored in both sets. Utah State will be back in action on Saturday, Feb. 2, when they travel to Salt Lake City to take on instate rival Utah.
WAC TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP TO BE HELD IN LAS CRUCES ? This season, the Western Athletic Conference Tournament will be held in Las Cruces, New Mexico on the campus of New Mexico State, April 24-27. The 2007 champion, Boise State, will look to win its fourth-straight title. Last season, host Boise State took the title at the Appleton Tennis Center in Boise, defeating second-seeded Fresno State, 4-0. This is the first time the WAC Tennis Championship has been held in Las Cruces.