Feb. 24, 2003
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Just Briefly
The Loyola Marymount University Lions remain ranked No. 67 in the latest ITA collegiate poll. The Lions played three matches last week, dropping two and winning one in between. LMU's first win of the year came against No.72 UC Irvine, 4-3. The Lions' two losses last week came at the hands of Cal State Northridge and Long Beach State, both by scores of 6-1.
Next Up
The Lions have another busy week ahead of them with two dual matches and a tournament on the schedule. First up for LMU are back-to-back road matches against Cal State Fullerton and No.9 UCLA. The Lions face the CSUF Titans on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. and the Bruins on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 1:30 p.m. LMU then rounds out the week with its final tournament appearance of the season in Las Vegas, Nev. The Lions will be at the UNLV Tournament Fri-Sun, Feb. 28-Mar. 1.
Titans Talk
Cal State Fullerton welcomes LMU with a 2-5 overall record and an 0-3 mark in Big West competition. The Titans have lost their last four matches. CSUF's two wins on the year came against Point Loma, 6-1, and Chapman, 7-0. The Titans finished the 2002 season 8-14 and 1-5 in the Big West. LMU owns a 15-9 advantage in the all-time series with the Fullerton. The Lions have won the last 12 consecutive meetings dating back to 1992.
About The Bruins
No.9 UCLA is currently 7-4 in dual competition. Each of the Bruins' four losses have come against top-10 teams; USC, Florida, Georgia and Arizona State. UCLA boasts two singles players that are ranked nationally. Sara Walker is No.6 in the nation according to the ITA singles rankings, while Jackie Carleton stands at No.84 nationally. The Lions will be looking for their first ever win against the Bruins. UCLA is 10-0 all-time against LMU.
The Vinis Adventure
Freshman Diana Vinis has been pretty impressive her first season as a Lion. Vinis, a native of Cucamonga, Calif., boasts the best record of any Lion at 12-8. She is also the only Lion to own a winning record in dual match competition at 3-1. Vinis is undefeated at the No.4 and No.5 singles spots posting 2-0 and 1-0 records at those positions, respectively.
Recap vs. Long Beach State
The No.67 LMU women's tennis team fell, 6-1, to Long Beach State on Saturday afternoon. The Lions dropped all three doubles games for the second straight match and went into singles play down 1-0. Unfortunately for LMU, it could not muster up a comeback like the UC Irvine match. The Lions managed just one point against the 49ers. Freshman Diana Vinis' win in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, over Megan Bjorkman at the No.4 singles spot kept the LMU from being shutout.
Doubles
No.1 Thomas/Bjorkman (LBS) def. Fileva/Hubl (LMU) 8-4
No.2 Kovalchuk/Marvel (LBS) def. Pakay/Dinham (LMU) 8-4
No.3 Chan/Carroll (LBS) def. Vinis/Sanchez (LMU) 8-2
Singles
No.1 Laura Thomas (LBS) def. Penka Fileva (LMU) 7-5, 6-2
No.2 Alena Kovalchuk (LBS) def. Edit Pakay (LMU) 6-3, 6-3
No.3 Lindsey Marvel (LBS) def. Lindsey Marvel (LBS) 6-3, 6-0
No.4 Diana Vinis (LMU) def. Megan Bjorkman (LBS) 6-3, 6-1
No.5 Kelly Chan (LBS) def. Patrycia Hubl (LMU) 7-5, 4-6, 10-4
No.6 Alanah Carroll (LBS) def. Erin Sanchez (LMU) 6-0, 6-0
Pakay Ranked By ITA
Senior Edit Pakay is currently ranked No.111 in the ITA singles poll. Pakay owns a 15-12 overall record and posted a 14-9 mark during the fall tournament schedule. She was playing the No.1 singles spot for the Lions and has recently switched to the No.2 singles position.
LMU Head Coach
Jamie Sanchez enters his 28th season as the head coach of the Lions program at LMU. Last season Sanchez led the Lions to a 14-11 overall record, a 4-1 WCC mark and the programs first ever WCC Championship title. The program, headed up by Sanchez since its inception in 1976, holds a mark of 361-317. Sanchez earned his second straight West Coast Conference Coach of the Year award last season. He coached four All-WCC singles selections and two doubles team awardees in 2002.
