By
Dan Komyati
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Win over rival ASU would propel Cats into postseason, coach says
With its back against the wall, the UA women's tennis team will travel to Tempe tomorrow to take on rival Arizona State in the team's final regular season dual.
Arizona is currently a "bubble team" for making the NCAA Championships - and a loss would place Arizona's postseason chances out of its control and into the hands of the tournament selection committee.
Ranked No. 41 nationally, Arizona would appear a lock for the team championship field of 64 if it didn't have just one conference win this season.
Defeating No. 10 ASU on the road would nail down a berth in the tournament - something the Arizona coaching staff feels it deserves.
Rarely playing an opponent ranked outside of the top 20 nationally, UA head coach Brad Dancer said his team's strength should go a long way in deciding the Wildcats' postseason fate.
"We absolutely deserve to be in the tournament, but who knows what will happen?" Dancer said. "We are better than we have performed this year, and there is no reason to think that we can't beat (ASU) this weekend."
In the first meeting, ASU outlasted Arizona 4-3 in a match decided in the third set of the final singles contest.
Arizona will be facing a tougher challenge this time, traveling to Tempe, where ASU is 13-1 this season.
A loss this weekend could result in the final dual match for Arizona's two seniors, Joanna Buczkowska and team captain Michelle Gough.
"I'm just going to go out there and enjoy myself," Gough said. "Our goal is to make the (NCAA) Tournament every year, so we hope to prolong our season this weekend."
The Wildcats (6-13 overall, 1-11 Pac-10) have lost several tight conference matches this year. Dancer said the team is hoping that UA will catch a few breaks this weekend en route to a postseason bid.
"We have had some good performances lately," Dancer said. "I just hope the girls can pull out a win. I know how much it will mean to them."
