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The Rice Thresher
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'More serious' Owls place renewed emphasis on success as a team by Eric Raub thresher staff
After serving as Rice's assistant coach for two years, Roger White has taken over as head coach following Paul Blankenship's retirement last summer after 20 years with the Owls. Former Stanford University player Julie Scott Thu has joined the team as the new assistant coach, and she hopes her experiences in college and at the professional level will benefit her new team. Thu, a three-time All American, competed for two years at the professional level in tournaments including Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. Thu finished the 1998 season, her senior year, ranked sixth nationally in both doubles and singles. She compiled a college record of 148-31 during her four years with the Cardinal. The Owls hope to continue her winning tradition. "We had to read her bio and she has done a lot of great things," senior Kylie Wallis said. "It's good to have her here as an example and as a female player. She's brought a lot of things from Stanford in the way of drills and running sprints and things we've never done." Thu hopes to transfer some of her experiences at Stanford, which finished last year as the best team in the nation, into Rice's program. "Roger and I have a lot of new ideas on doing things different this year from last year," Thu said. "We really want to concentrate on the team portion and peak in January when the team play begins." The Owls also boast another new addition, one whose presence will be felt directly on the court. The coaching staff is confident that freshman scholarship player and Costa Rican native Erika Villalobos has the competitive experience necessary for both the individual tournaments in the fall season as well as spring dual matches. "Erika's the No. 1 player out of Costa Rica," White said. "She comes in with a tremendous background of playing experience. She represented her country in the Federation Cup, which is a team event, and [she] beat several college players." The fall season was scheduled to begin this weekend at the Lady Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., but Rice will not attend the event due to Tuesday's terrorist attacks on the United States (See Story, Page 1). The Owls open the fall season Sept. 28 in Boston at the Harvard Invitational. But the Owls are already thinking about the spring season. The coaching staff feels that individual achievements during the fall season may have received too much attention last year. The Owls have established that success as a team is their unrivaled top priority, and they hope to improve on last year's unranked finish and first-round loss in the Western Athletic Conference tournament. "We are definitely going to de-emphasize any individual accomplishments to prepare for the team effort," White said. "That's not going to be our focus this year." Another difference returning players are noticing this year is an increase in the difficulty of the training regimen since White assumed the role of head coach. "We're spending more time on the court and doing more work, and it's awesome," junior Jeri Gonzales said. "We're tired, we're sore, but we know it's doing good things." Rice lost its top player from last year, senior Erin Waters, who has used her four years of eligibility. But the Owls should be able to compensate for her loss - all eight of Rice's other players return, and this year's team boasts three seniors compared to last year's one. "Our group is a lot more mature than last year," Wallis said. "That's good because I was a little worried. Everyone is more serious about tennis. If the seniors set an example that the changes are good, everyone else will follow." How far the rest of the team will follow the seniors can only be guessed at this point, but with the new recruits, a new emphasis on team building and the increased training intensity, the Owls are entertaining plans for next year's NCAA tournament. "We've got a great new recruit and we expect to do really well," Gonzales said. "When we look to the future and our schedule, we are planning for the NCAA."
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