BERKELEY/STANFORD – The University of Utah women's tennis program is headed out west to California for a pair of conference matches. The Utes will take on No. 10 Cal on Saturday, March 23 and No. 4 Stanford on Sunday, March 24.
MATCH INFORMATION
Utah (10-4) vs. Cal (8-3)
DATE | TIME: Saturday, March 23 | 1:00 p.m. MT
LOCATION: Berkeley, CA | Hellman Tennis Complex
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TWITTER UPDATES: @UteWomensTennis
MATCH INFORMATION
Utah (10-4) vs. Stanford (12-1)
DATE | TIME: Sunday, March 24 | 1:00 p.m. MT
LOCATION: Stanford, CA | Taube Tennis Center
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TWITTER UPDATES: @UteWomensTennis
FIRST SERVE
Utah is set to face the California Golden Bears in a 1 p.m. match on Saturday, March 23 in Berkeley, before facing Stanford on Sunday, March 24 at 1 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
The Utes last faced No. 29 Washington on the road last Sunday, falling to the Huskies 5-2. Washington claimed the doubles point after defeating
Kat Lyman/
Samantha Horwood on the second court and
Marcela Lopez/
Ana Luiza Cruz on court No. 1, with both matches ending 6-2.
In singles competition, Yuhan Liu claimed a victory for Utah on the third court, topping her opponent 6-4, 6-2. Sara Akid followed suit on court No. 6, winning 6-3, 7-5, however, the Utes were unable to fend off the Huskies efforts in the remaining matches. Cruz fought hard in her match on the fifth court sending her match to three sets, but ultimately fell 6-1, 5-7, 6-4.
IN THE RANKS
The Utes are currently ranked No. 45 in the country, after falling to No. 29 Washington on the road. Utah's
Marcela Lopez is ranked No. 100 in the country after posting a 8-4 record so far on the season. In the fall she claimed a runner-up title at the ITA Regionals and made an ITA Championship appearance where she picked up two wins in consolation play.
HEAD COACH RIC MORTERA
Ric Mortera is in his fifth season as the head coach of the Utah women's tennis program entering the 2024 spring slate. So far in his tenure he has accumulated a 55-45 overall record. In the 2022-23 season, under Coach Mortera's leadership, the Utes notched a 13-11 record and topped the ITA Mountain Region rankings. Highlights included their inaugural win against Cal and a remarkable triumph over No. 16 Washington, marking their highest-ranked victory in the Pac-12 era. Also during the 2023 season, Mortera led the Utes to the most Pac-12 wins since 2015. In the Fall 2023 slate, Mortera's squad found success in the ITA Regionals, with
Emma Kamper staking claim to the singles B draw and
Marcela Lopez claiming second in the singles main draw, sending her to nationals.
SCOUTING CAL
Sitting at No. 10 in ITA ranking, the Golden Bears will enter the weekend boasting an 8-3 overall record and remain undefeated in conference play. Utah has faced Cal on 13 previous accounts, yielding just a single victory. The Utes claimed victory over the Golden Bears during their last meeting in March of 2023, snapping a 12-match losing streak and marking their first ever victory over their Pac-12 counterpart.
SCOUTING STANFORD
Stanford is currently ranked No. 4 in the country, holding a 12-1 overall record and 2-0 in the Pac-12. The Utes have been unable to defeat Stanford across their 13 previous matches. The two programs last met in March of 2023, where Stanford claimed a 5-2 victory over Utah.
NEXT UP
Utah is set to return to the George S. Eccles Tennis Center to host UCLA on Friday, April 5 and USC on Sunday, April 7.
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