March 26, 2009
The University of New Mexico women’s tennis team returns to San Diego to take on No. 71 UNLV and No. 29 San Diego State. The Lobos (5-9) have won back-to-back matches and three of their last five as they begin Mountain West Conference play. New Mexico will play UNLV (9-6) Friday at 10 a.m. (Mountain Standard) and San Diego State (11-3) on Saturday at noon.
Moving On Up…
Senior Ola Abou-Zekry earned Mountain West Conference Player of the Week for her performance at the Barnes Collegiate Invitational this past weekend. Abou-Zekry also captured her 74th career singles win on March 20 against NAU. With the win Abou-Zekry tied Chris Hoffee for 12th on the career singles wins list.
Abou-Zekry has won five out of her last six singles matches and doubles matches with partner Emma Hayman.
Mackenzie White earned her 66th career singles win also on March 20 with her win against NAU. Mackenzie White is tied with All-American Sandy Lukowski for 15th on the career singles wins list. White has won her last six singles matches and has only lost one set in the process.
Who Are The Rebels?
UNLV is also heading to San Diego having won its last two matches The Rebels defeated Oklahoma, 6-1, on March 17 in Las Vegas
UNLV is coached by Kevin Cory who has compiled a 142-71 record during his 10-year tenure. The Rebels finished tied for second with the Lobos in the Mountain West Conference last year and made it to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Who Are The Aztecs?
San Diego State heads into to conference play with a five-match winning streak. The Aztecs’ last win came on Tuesday when they defeated Harvarrd, 6-1, in San Diego.
San Diego State is coached by Peter Mattera who has earned a 228-159 record during his 16 years at SDSU. The Aztecs return six letterwinners who led them to a 11-13 overall record last year and 3-5 in Mountain West.
San Diego State currently has the best record in the conference, followed by UNLV.
What Happened Last?
The Lobos participated in the Barnes Collegiate Invitational this past weekend (March 18-20) in San Diego. The weekend started out with a loss (6-1) to No. 44 Ole Miss, but New Mexico bounced back by defeating UT-Arlington, 4-3, and Northern Arizona, 5-2.
National Spotlight…
The Mountain West Conference has three teams in the top 50 on the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. SDSU comes in on top at No. 29, TCU at No. 32 next Utah at No. 44, BYU lands at No. 53 and UNLV at 71.
On The Rise…
Head coach Kathy Kolankiewicz now has 349 career wins under her belt and will be looking for her 350 this weekend.
Did You Know…
Six of the ten players on the roster are international. Two of the players are native New Mexicans. This past summer all of courts (indoor and out) were resurfaced along with the indoor courts all receiving new hardware. The Lobos have had a winning record for the past 12 years. The Lobos earned a 3.65 GPA for the 2007-2008 school year. Seniors Ola Abou-Zekry, Maria Sotirchos and Mackenzie White all received above a 4.0 for the 2008 fall semester.
Coaches Corner…
“We’re looking forward to starting our conference play. Our first 5 matches are against top 70 nationally ranked teams but we have already played seven ranked opponents so we know what to expect and what we need to do to win those matches. Our two wins last weekend boosted our confidence. We’re ready to go for it.”