UH Wahine play San Jose State in WAC tourney

Advertiser Staff

Western Athletic Conference tennis championships begin today for the University of Hawai'i Wahine, who have a play-in match against San Jose State at the Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center in Fresno, Calif.

Today's winner joins the seven other conference schools in the next round. The UH men open play tomorrow. Both Hawai'i teams lost in the first round last year.

Nina Wenger, an all-conference player from Germany, is the Wahine's No. 1. She won the Dillingham Championships in October and is 10-5 this season, winning six of eight since returning from a back injury. Wenger is also 7-8 at No. 1 doubles with Stacy Hakikawa, a sophomore out of Leilehua.

At 18-6, Polina Kravets has the team's best record. The sophomore from Uzbekistan — via Hawai'i Pacific — is 13-6 in doubles, with Brigitte Brubakken, a junior from Norway. Seniors Lynn Novack (Florida) and Suzie Saunders (England) are 9-10 at No. 2 doubles.

The eighth-seeded Wahine (12-13) beat ninth-seeded San Jose State (6-15) last month, 5-2. Today's winner plays top-seeded and 10th-ranked Fresno State. Texas Christian (No. 25), Tulsa (No. 40) and Southern Methodist (No. 43) are also in the country's Top 50.

The UH men are seeded sixth and play third-seeded Fresno State in the first round. FSU is ranked 26th. Top-seeded defending champion TCU is ranked fourth and second-seeded SMU seventh.

Amandeep Singh, a senior from India, plays No. 1 for the Rainbows and is 7-10 in singles and 6-8 in doubles. Junior Jorge Gonzalez, from Canada, is the only singles player with a winning record (8-5 at Nos. 3-5). He is 6-5 in doubles with Arizona freshman Even Spiegel. Former Hawai'i high school champion Malino Oda is 7-9 in singles and 5-6 in doubles.