With the disappointment of its first setback at home behind it, the Texas A&M women’s tennis team will take to the court this weekend to square off against non-conference foe Wake Forest University.
It took four hours for it to happen, but on Wednesday night the Aggies surrendered their first home loss of the season. After securing the doubles point with the help of the No. 38 doubles team in the country, juniors Jessica Roland and Roberta Spencer, the No. 28 Aggies (10-7, 5-2 Big 12) fell to No. 44 Baylor University in a 4-3 marathon match.
However, when the Demon Deacons hobble into College Station on Saturday, they will be in search of just their second win this season, coming off the 2002 season in which they tied their school record with 26 wins.
With much of its team intact from last year’s squad, Wake Forest is at the bottom of the ACC standings with a 1-15 record. WFU Head Coach Brian Fleishman, the 2002 ITA National Coach of the Year, expects a heated contest in the match with A&M.
“Every time Wake comes down to College Station, we have to expect a battle,” Fleishman said. “I expect this match to be just as exciting as in the past.”
In lieu of what Wake Forest’s record might convey to the lay, A&M Head Coach Bobby Kleinecke is very wary of the threat that a 1-15 team presents to his club.
“You can look at their record and … think that they are really down this year, and they probably are down a bit confidence-wise,” Kleinecke said. “But, this is a very capable team that has lost a lot of 4-3 matches this year to a lot of good teams, from the top 20 all the way down.”
The Aggies will be looking to senior Ashley Hedberg to continue her strong play of late. After being moved up to the No. 2 singles position three matches ago, Hedberg has yet to lose and has defended her court in convincing fashion. South African sophomore Karin Coetzee, who is ranked No. 79 in the national singles rankings, leads Wake Forest in doubles and singles play.
“This is a team that has made it to the NCAA quarterfinals, so when you go out there and start play even at 0-0, those records don’t mean anything,” Kleinecke said. “Most important for us is we need to bounce back from the Baylor loss. It will be necessary for us to put our best match on the court.”
First serve is set for 1:30 p.m. this Saturday at the A&M Tennis Center as the Aggies look to improve to 11-7 on the year.