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Long Beach State University Athletics
49ers Set to Host Pair This Weekend
3/4/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
March 4, 2008
LONG BEACH--No. 40-ranked Long Beach State (6-4), winners of three-straight, will host UC Davis (7-5) on Friday at 1 p.m., and No. 47-ranked UC Irvine (6-5) on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. All three teams are red hot, with the Anteaters having won five of six, while the Aggies have won seven of their last nine. All matches will be played at the El Dorado Tennis Facility on Studebaker (between Spring and Willow) in Long Beach.
The Black and Blue Rivalry series with UCI has turned into a heated battled between the two 405 rivals. Since 2002, the pair has battled for the conference title, with LBSU winning five times. In 2002, 2004 and 2006, the 49ers beat the Anteaters for the right to go to the NCAA Tournament, winning the Big West Tournament. LBSU has won eight of the last nine meetings, since 2002. UCI won last year's only meeting, 4-3. UCD is in their first year in the Big West.
Herzyl Legaspie has an 11-6 record in singles play and is 8-2 at the No. 4 position, while Randi Schuler is the top player for the Aggies at 7-5 in dual play at the top spot this season. Eighteen different pairs have played doubles this season.
Brooke Bartlett leads the team with a 6-2 record for UCI during dual play. Senior Jessica Broadfoot and junior Ali Borowicz are second on the team with 6-4 records in singles this season. The doubles team of Borowicz and junior Heidi Kaloi is 3-2 on the year at the No. 3 position to lead the team. Becky Bernhard is tied with LBSU's Hannah Grady for most Big West Player of the Week certificates with nine a piece.
Junior Hannah Grady moved up to No. 72 nationally paced by her third spring win over a ranked opponent. She is now 15-6 overall and is looking for her second-straight 20-win season. Grady has won five of her last seven dual matches. Grady, along with partner Stephanie Bengson, are 12-4 in doubles play and have won six straight.
Freshman Deborah Armstrong is also the team win leader in singles, going 15-9, at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Armstrong has won five of her last seven as well. Armstrong has teamed with Lisa Sutton as the No. 3 doubles team, as that duet has won five-straight and are 6-2 overall.
Serves and Volleys: The 49ers are playing off campus this year as their new 12-court tennis facility is being constructed... Terry Rhodes has donated $1.25 million towards the project, and the program, while the family of former coach, Gloria Hendricks, has donated $50,000 towards the scoreboard... Hannah Grady has been named Big West Player of the Week two times this season and nine times in her career... LBSU has won five Big West titles (2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) and have had five ensuing NCAA Tournaments appearances.... all four of the team's losses this season have been to top-25 opponents (Cal, USC, LSU, Arizona State) and the team has two wins over ranked opponents (San Diego State, Arizona).
Players Mentioned
