By Long Beach State women’s tennis looks to tame the Weber State Wildcats (9-4) Friday at home in an 11 a.m. matchup that requires it to build off its previous win against Cal Poly.
Both teams have struggled in its doubles matches, losing its last two doubles points this season. Ideally, LBSU (7-1) needs its freshmen duo of Wiktoria Rutkowska and Dominique Meyer to outperform their previous 7-6 loss.
“We were trying every point,” Rutkowska said after her doubles loss. “It was hard for us … but it was game-by-game, point-by-point so there was few balls [that stopped us from winning].”
The duo cleaning up their mistakes may be the only adjustment the team needs, with the pairing of Natalia Munoz and Lalita Devarakonda having been successful in Long Beach’s previous games.
More importantly, the 49ers must replicate the success they had in their singles sweep against Cal Poly. One person to look out for the 49ers is sophomore Carlota Casasampere, who competed in her first match this season and won.
“She was strong and consistent,” head coach Jenny Hilt-Costello said. “It wasn’t her best tennis but it was hard to get a rhythm.”
Casasampere is currently projected to face Lloyd McKenna, a player who has gotten substantially more playing time, winning two of her last four games. Although she may not have the same experience, the best way for her to win is by keeping up with the tempo of the match.
She may also need to model her singles performance after Devarakonda’s, who faced the same expectations when she was inserted into lineup, being slated at the sixth slot. Devarakonda now has a 5-0 record, and was recently promoted to the fifth spot on the lineup against Cal Poly.
Following its game against Weber State, Long Beach has an 11 a.m. Saturday matchup against Cal State Fullerton.
