Women's Tennis Season Preview
1/29/2021
SEATTLE – If there is any silver lining to the cancellations and postponements brought to college sports by the ongoing pandemic, it’s the sense of gratitude when play finally resumes. Washington women’s tennis has been hoping for this weekend for a long time.
“Now that it’s finally here it doesn’t feel real,” says Head Coach Robin Stephenson. “It’s a little surreal. We’ve had so long to prepare and all of a sudden it’s here. But the girls are so excited.”
The Huskies will begin their campaign this Saturday and Sunday in the Nordstrom Tennis Center against Idaho. No one in college athletics is looking too far ahead this season, but UW is slated to play its first 13 matches at home going into Pac-12 play in March.
When last we saw the Dawgs in action, they were following up on 2019’s breakthrough Sweet 16 run, and were 11-3 with a 2-0 start to Pac-12 play and ranked No. 27 at the time by the ITA. However the Huskies currently have a different look, having graduated Katarina Kopcalic from the starting lineup. Two more singles starters, Natsuho Arakawa and Nika Zupancic, remain in their home countries due to the pandemic.
So the Huskies will be a bit shorthanded this season, with seven players heading into the opener, but won’t be short on grit.
“It’s going to be a challenge for sure with seven, and we’re going to have people higher in our lineup than they might have been, but it’s an awesome opportunity for the new girls,” Stephenson says. “We’ll have three freshmen playing in some capacity, and for their development we just have to have a growth mindset and be totally focused on getting better match by match. Our freshmen can play, so we’re excited to see what we can do.”
Those freshmen include Tara Chilton from Reno, Nevada; Sarah-Maude Fortin from Montreal, Canada; and Yolanda Lin from just a few miles east in Sammamish, Washington. All three have impressed Stephenson and associate head coach Georgia Munns, and all three will be key in continuing to built the winning culture at Washington that has taken shape over the past several years.
A productive fall season saw the Huskies make progress with their games and stay mentally fresh.
“I think we did a good job in the fall. We knew exactly what we had. We had eight weeks total and no tournaments, so we made a plan for each week and did some different things to keep it light and fun. We were training hard but wanted to keep it fresh. The girls did a good job of coming in each day and being grateful for practicing,” says Stephenson.
Our culture is awesome right now. When you go through hard things together it just brings you closer. I think they’ve bonded, they’ve worked hard, I think they’re excited to go through the season together. They believe in each other.Robin Stephenson
Leading the way for the Dawgs once again this season will be Vanessa Wong, who has compiled a 50-10 dual record over her career, including a 11-1 mark last year before the season suspension. Sedona Gallagher, 25-6 over her first one-and-a-half years of dual matches, should climb the lineup this season, with Zoey Weil (7-5 in singles duals in 2020, and 8-2 in doubles) and Ashley Chang (2-1 in duals in 2020) also taking on expanded roles.
Those four returners helped to quickly form a new core with the three freshmen.
“We miss Natsu and Nika a ton and their leadership and experience, and we were looking forward to the freshmen learning from them because they’re two of the hardest workers and really good competitors. But having a small group of just seven in the fall to go through this together has made them a tighter-knit group than ever before,” says Stephenson.
Refocusing on why they compete and what it means to them has the Huskies ready for whatever 2021 might bring.
“Our culture is awesome right now,” Stephenson says. “When you go through hard things together it just brings you closer. I think they’ve bonded, they’ve worked hard, I think they’re excited to go through the season together. They believe in each other.
“They understand how much everyone in the department is caring for them and supporting them. That can go a long way, regardless of the situation, who we’re playing, cancellations, this team is totally on board to go with the flow this year and ready for any opportunity.”
Vanessa Wong | Senior | Toronto, Canada
Coach Stephenson on Wong: “Vanessa, she’s our only senior now, and obviously she had a really strong year last year playing No. 1 singles and doubles. We expect her to be at the top of the lineup again. She’s looked great. She’s fit, she’s ready, I think she used this time to mentally prepare and physically I think she’s in a really good place. And with her experience she’s got a ton of confidence going into the season, and she’s become a really good leader for us. She’s taken it on herself to take the freshmen under her wing a little bit. I’m expecting really big things for her. Her goal is to be one of the best players in the country and we think she can do that."
Sedona Gallagher | Junior | Henderson, Nev.
Coach Munns on Gallagher: “Sedona obviously has won a ton of matches for us in two years while dealing with some injuries. I feel like she’s in a pretty good place physically, and this is the year we’re planning on challenging her and putting her a little higher. She's really motivated. From when she signed here she’s wanted to win us an NCAA Championship and be an All-American. I think her injuries the first two years kind of affected her goals, but now it seems like she’s ready to go and on a mission. She’s playing really well and we’re just excited to give her a little bit more leadership."
Zoey Weil | Junior | Columbus, Ohio
Coach Munns on Weil: “Zoey has been in the doubles lineup for two years and got some opportunities in singles last year, and we’re excited for her to get a bunch of matches in a row. I think that’s going to be the best way for her to develop and challenge herself. She had a really good fall practicing and improving her level. Really looking for her to step up and take advantage of an opportunity to play maybe a bit higher than she would have, and I think she can do it."
Ashley Chang | Sophomore | Toronto, Canada
Coach Stephenson on Chang: “Ashley has been working the past year to get herself to a place where she can really contribute for us. She played last weekend (against Oregon) and played some good doubles for us. We are hoping that she continues to develop because it’s going to be a battle at the bottom of the lineup and we’re hoping she can get out there and contribute. She’s got a lot of skills at the tennis court and putting all those skills together will be the goal."
Sarah-Maude Fortin | Freshman | Montreal, Canada
Coach Stephenson on Fortin: “She’s come in with a hunger every day to get better. She works super hard. Just an awesome girl, a great team player. She wants to play professionally and I think her work ethic and her focus and commitment to the program in the short time she’s been here is amazing. She just increases the level and intensity at practice every day, so super excited to see what she can do. She’s very excited to play college tennis and get her career started. I think she can do some really big things and I think she’s going to be one of the best freshmen in the Pac-12 this year."
Tara Chilton | Freshman | Reno, Nev.
Coach Munns on Chilton: “T.C. is awesome. She’s come in with a great work ethic; really determined, and has wanted to get better every single day. The fall was awesome for her, to work for eight straight weeks and be challenged every day by her teammates, it’s raised her level a ton. She’s clutch. In any pressure situation we’ve done she’s been awesome. She has a great opportunity to play a bunch of matches and get a lot better and we can’t wait to see her compete out there. She will battle and I think she’s going to improve a bunch this year."
Yolanda Lin | Freshman | Sammamish, Wash.
Coach Stephenson on Lin: “She committed two years ago so we’re ready for her to get out there and compete for the Huskies. She’s a great competitor and I think she’s going to bring a lot of energy and passion on gameday. She’s very passionate about being here at UW, being a local kid. Naturally she’s a strong competitor and is going to fight really hard. She’s made a lot of improvements over the past six months, and its been really good being on the court with her and helping her develop her game. She wants to get a lot better, she’s focused at practice, she’s ready to go. She just wants to compete and she’s ready to start playing matches for us. I think she’s going to be nails for us somewhere in the middle or bottom of the lineup and she’ll be a tough out for the Huskies.”