Tennis teams to face fierce Bay Area opponents

No. 10 California will arrive Friday with a 14-4 record, which includes a 6-1 mark in the Pacific 10 Conference.

The racket poise of Stanford, the top-ranked team in the nation, will grace the hard courts on Saturday.

Stanford has totaled 19 victories to just one defeat and is 7-1 in the Pac-10.

The Cardinal had amassed a 37-match win streak, which dated back to last year's Rolex National Team Indoor Tournament in Florida, before a 5-4 upset loss No. 16 UCLA last week.

All tennis fans will be treated to free popcorn and T-shirts upon entry to the stadium.

Meanwhile, after halting a six-pack of consecutive losses with a win over No. 60 Oregon last weekend, UA's men's tennis team will collide with two hot Pac-10 opponents in the next two days.

Today, No. 54 Arizona and No. 28 California will meet at 1:30 p.m. and on Saturday, the Wildcats will take on top-ranked Stanford.

"I was really pleased with our performance against Oregon," UA head coach Bill Wright said. "But this weekend, we are preparing for California and are hoping to get some breaks against Stanford."

The Cardinal only lost two sets en route to a 7-0 blanking of the Golden Bears on Wednesday.

"We're going for sets against Stanford and matches against California," Wright said. "We think that we match up better against Cal."

Arizona, standing at a 5-9 overall record and a 2-7 Pacific 10 Conference mark, is looking for at least two wins in its three remaining matches.

"We're pretty sure that we're going to make the Regional playoffs, but a win against California and Arizona State, on the last weekend of the regular season, will put us in pretty good shape," Wright said.

Sophomore Jean-Noel Lacoste, who has been injured with a herniated disk for the last three weeks, will return to action against California.

"We're just going to try to switch around the team and get some good matchups against Cal," Lacoste said.

"Against a team like Stanford, you have to be positive no matter what," Lacoste added. "You have to be as relaxed as possible, and have to go out there saying that you have a chance."