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The Rice Thresher
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by Eric Raub thresher staff Just blame it on the rain and move on. That's the attitude the women's tennis team is taking after a disappointing end to the fall season last weekend at the ITA Southwest Regional Tournament. Rain in College Station caused countless delays and changes in location and tournament format, and the Owls didn't adjust well to the changes. No matches were completed Friday, and on Saturday officials decided to move the tournament to indoor facilities in Houston. "About the time we got there [Friday] it started raining," assistant coach Roger White said. "We waited all day and hit for about 30 minutes. Saturday morning we made the decision to head for Houston and we began play at six in the evening." By that time, the field of 128 had narrowed to about 90. Some teams withdrew due to budget constraints, the travel to Houston and an unwillingness to deal with the weather hassle. When play finally began, the only players remaining were from teams who wanted to stay - resulting in a significant increase in the average quality of the field. The changes left the Owls facing the likes of Baylor University, Texas A&M University, the University of Texas, and the University of Arkansas, all top 40 finishers last year. Singles play was shortened so that each match was decided in one pro-set. This left no room to recover from a slow start, and half the Owl squad fell in the first round. Sophomore Jeri Gonzales captured two wins, including an 8-4 second-round upset of 17th-seeded Ann Rosland of Arkansas, to advance to the round of 32. Although Gonzales made it farther than any other Owl, she felt the unforgiving pro-set play caused problems for her and many of her teammates. "In my third round match I had a slow start," Gonzales said. "With those pro-sets you can't afford to have a slow start. I definitely think a lot of girls would've done better if they'd had a full match." A couple of the Owls scored first-round wins before being eliminated. Senior Erin Waters quickly downed Texas A&M's Danielle May Lee 8-1 and junior Judith Hagedorn defeated Baylor's Monica Gonzales 8-2. Rice was unable to score a win in doubles play. After their first-round opponents withdrew from the tournament, freshman Annie Goodrich and junior Kylie Wallis fell 8-6 in the second round to Texas A&M's Martina Nedorostova and Marjorie Terburgh, the nation's 32nd-best doubles team a year ago. Hagedorn and freshman Yasmin Fisher suffered a close 9-7 loss to Texas Tech University's top doubles team. Despite few team members advancing through the brackets, the Owls feel the tournament was positive given the circumstances. "For all the adversity, the kids played pretty well," White said. "We handled it pretty well. Even the kids who didn't play well for us were doing everything they could. They played with all the intensity they could." Although the Owls admit that many players could have played better in the tournament, they also know that dwelling on lost points and lost matches is unproductive. Instead, their thoughts must move forward to the spring dual-match season and how they will come together to play as a team. "We ran into some tough players," Gonzales said. "People could've done better. But we have a really good team with a lot of talent. We just need to start believing. I think we'll do really well in the spring." The Owls have until late January to improve. Their spring schedule will give them a chance to bounce back against many of the opponents who handed them early losses last weekend. "We could've played better," White said. "We definitely would've liked to see some people do better. But we're on track to perform well in the spring."
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