Colorado University Athletics
Tennis Hosts AFA & CSU Saturday
BOULDER GÇô For the second weekend in as many weeks, the
University of Colorado womenGÇÖs tennis team will continue its
non-conference home schedule, this time hosting Air Force and
Colorado State on Saturday, Feb. 1 at the Rocky Mountain Tennis
Center (Millennium Harvest House).
The Buffaloes will face the Falcons at 10 a.m., then later in the
day at 4 p.m. to take on Colorado State.
The pair of home matches in the same day is the first time for a
head coach Nicole Kenneally team in her 15 years at the helm of the
program. CU has not played a pair of matches in the same day since
the 1996-97 season under then-head coach Tom Russ, when the Buffs
played the host Rainbow Warriors (W, 9-0) and Pacific (W, 4-2) in
Hawaii.
On Saturday against the Air Force Academy, CU holds a 13-1
advantage all-time against its in-state foe. The Academy
edged CU last year in Colorado Springs in the season opener, 4-3.
AFA secured the doubles point, then took three of the six singles
matches. The Buffaloes are 7-0 at home in the series.
Against the Rams, CU has dominated from day one holding a
commanding 27-0 series lead with 15 of those victories coming at
home. Last season, CU took a 6-1 victory.
Entering play this weekend, Alex Aiello and Nuria Orme+¦o Ruiz lead
the team in wins with 12 and 11, respectively. Julyette Steur and
Ashley Tiefel each have seven.
In doubles, the duo of Orme+¦o Ruiz and Winde Janssens have eight
victories, followed by Steur and Tiefel with six. Alex Aiello and
Carla Manzi Tenorio have five doubles wins.
CU enters its third year of play in the Pac-12 Conference, regarded
as the best womenGÇÖs tennis conference nationally. In the second
week of the national Top-75 poll, the conference features eight of
the 10 schools ranked. Defending champion Stanford is ranked at the
top, followed by UCLA (No. 5), USC (No. 6), and California (No. 8)
rounding out conference teams among the top 10. All four schools
will visit Boulder in March.
CU takes to the road next week for the first time this spring
season travelling to the Sunflower State against Big 12 Conference
foes Kansas (Feb. 7) and No. 53 Kansas State (Feb. 8). ItGÇÖs also a
homecoming for CU junior Ashley Tiefel, who is from Leawood, Kan.
(Blue Valley HS).