By
Dan Komyati
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Optimism abounds as conference tourney gets underway
After a season of underachieving, the UA women's tennis team will have one last opportunity to showcase its talent against the best the Pacific 10 Conference has to offer.
In what may be their last competition of the season, the Wildcats travel to Ojai, Calif., for the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament beginning today.
Arizona will not know its fate for the NCAA team championships until May 3.
After dropping their final 10 conference matches this season - finishing the season with a single victory in the Pac-10 - the Wildcats bring a determined group to Ojai this weekend.
The singles field of the tournament consists of two, 32-player brackets - the main draw and invitational draw.
UA will enter four players - senior Michelle Gough, juniors Laresa Marino and Sophie Regnier, and freshman Debbie Larocque - into the main draw. Freshman Perrine Pernin will compete in the invitational draw.
On the doubles side, Gough will try to defend her title with Regnier in the main draw. Last year Gough and Lindsay Blau won UA's first Pac-10 tournament championship since 1993.
The duo of Larocque and Marino is also seeded in the invitational bracket.
Perhaps the most consistent Wildcat throughout the dual match season has been Regnier. With a team-best 11-5 record, she finds herself peaking at just the right time.
"I have been playing my best tennis of the year recently, so I just hope I can keep it up this weekend," Regnier said. "This may be the last chance for everybody to prove that we are better than we performed this year, so I think we are all really motivated for the tournament."
For UA head coach Brad Dancer, his Wildcats find themselves in a transition period as they take the courts in Ojai this weekend.
"We want the older girls to finish off their careers in the most positive manner, and we're also hoping to see the development of some of our younger players," Dancer said.
Dancer, who added that he is really looking hard towards next year, hopes to catch a glimpse of the future this weekend as Gough and injured senior Joanna Buczkowska are the only graduating Wildcats.
He is very optimistic that his squad will have a strong showing after a difficult season.
"I think Perrine is really coming into her own, she has great passion," Dancer said. "Debbie is ready to get back on track, and if Michelle can get past her tough first-round opponent, she could really do some things as well."
