Jan. 16, 2013

TUCSON, Ariz. -

No. 29 Arizona women’s tennis opens the spring season with dual matches on back-to-back days this weekend. Arizona will first face Northern Arizona on Friday, Jan. 18 at 10 a.m. The Wildcats will then take on UC Davis on Saturday at noon. Both matches will be played at Arizona’s Robson Tennis Center.

The Wildcats’ No. 29 ranking by the Intercollege Tennis Association marks the third-consecutive year that Arizona has been ranked in the preseason top 50.

Arizona heads into the 2013 season following a 16-9 overall record in 2012, including a 5-5 mark in the Pac-12.

Returning for their third UA season, juniors Kim Stubbe (Mol, Belgium), Susan Mc Rann (Dublin, Ireland), and Lacey Smyth (Oceanside, California) will lead the Wildcats under head coach Vicky Maes, who is entering her 12th season. All three juniors made the 2012 Pac-12 All-Academic team.

Returning as well is sophomore Laura Oldham (Sheffield, England).

Stubbe will aim to complete her third season with a winning record in singles play, finishing 12-6 as a sophomore and 11-3 as a freshman. Stubbe will also seek to continue her success in doubles play, after pairing with Mc Rann and finishing with a 13-4 record in 2012.

Last season, Smyth competed at the No. 1 spot in singles play and posted a 14-11 record, including wins over four players ranked in the top 50. As a result, she was named Pac-12 Honorable Mention.

The 2013 roster features new players in freshmen Shayne Austin (Oak Park, Calif.), Inge Hendrikx (Zundert, The Netherlands) and junior transfer Akilah James (Brooklyn, N.Y.). All three players will make their spring Wildcat debuts on Friday.

In their last outing against Northern Arizona in 2011, the Wildcats defeated the Lumberjacks, 7-0. Arizona also swept UC Davis when they last met the Aggies in 2010. Arizona has won five-consecutive season openers.  

Sophomores Johanna Vang and Hannah Stone return as the Lumberjacks’ top players. As a freshman, Stone was selected to the All-Big Sky first team and Vang was selected to the All-Big Sky honorable mention.

For UC Davis, senior Lauren Curry and junior Megan Heneghan are the top players for the Aggies. Last spring, Curry posted the best Big West record among her teammates, while Heneghan was selected to the All-Big West Singles First Team for the second straight year.

The Wildcats went undefeated in all home matches last season, with a 13-0 mark. Coach Maes and her squad will attempt to continue the undefeated streak against Northern Arizona. UA will also seek to make its third-consecutive NCAA tournament appearance this season.

For complete results and continued coverage of Arizona women’s tennis, visit the Arizona women’s tennis page on Facebook or ArizonaWildcats.com. For live updates on this weekend’s matches, follow @ArizonaWTennis on Twitter.