Top-ranked Women of Troy to face Oregon, Washington


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As the new No. 1 team in the country, USC women’s tennis will have a target on its back during the Women of Troy’s road trip up to the Pacific Northwest.

USC last occupied the top ranking in the nation more than a decade ago in 2003, and they will look to stay there with victories over No. 56 Oregon and No. 44 Washington.

Since a heartbreaking defeat in Westwood to archrivals UCLA in early March, the Women of Troy have responded with a four-game win streak, including a 6-1 drubbing of then-No. 10 Stanford. USC’s overall record stands at 14-2, and the team sports a perfect 3-0 record in Pac-12 play so far this season.

Oregon, on the other hand, started the season well but is beginning to lose momentum. The Ducks followed up four straight wins in February with a 2-3 record since. They now have an 8-5 record on the season and are trying to break out of a     two-game losing streak with an upset over USC.

In the same fixture last year, the Women of Troy shut out the Ducks, 4-0, at Marks Stadium. Traveling up to Eugene this season may pose a different type of challenge for the squad, but it doesn’t faze head coach Richard Gallien.

“We’re just trying to get better, whether it’s in Eugene, Seattle or [Arizona State],” Gallien said. “We have seven matches left for the rest of the year, so we’re going to try to win the match, but we’re just trying to get better.”

To react to a tough loss the way USC did after falling to Bruins was no easy task, but the Women of Troy were up to the challenge. They haven’t lost since and now look down on their fourth-ranked bitter rivals from the No. 1 spot. The key to such a strong response, according to Gallien, was the maturity and character within the team.

“[It sounds] totally trite and cliche,” Gallien said, “but it’s really true because if you don’t have those [qualities], then you are just not really resilient.”

USC boasts many players high up in the ITA rankings in both singles and doubles.

Junior Giuliana Olmos has enjoyed a very productive season and currently leads her teammates with a career-best No. 11 ranking. Seniors Sabrina Santamaria and Zoë Scandalis are ranked No. 20 and                      No. 49, respectively, and talented freshmen round out the ranked Women of Troy, with Meredith Xepoleas at No. 64, Gabby Smith at No. 65 and Madison Westby at No. 73.

Olmos and Scandalis are also the No. 15 pair in the country, and sophomore Zoë Katz and Santamaria recently broke into the rankings at No. 19. Katz has previously also partnered with senior Gabriella DeSimone, and they still hold the No. 30 ranking.

The career highs and top rankings may excite fans, but the Women of Troy themselves are not paying attention. At the end of the day, they’re just numbers.

“It’s just some computer ranking,” Gallien said. “We could win four-in-a-row and drop.”

But beyond ignoring numbers, Gallien believes that taking the “treading water” approach atop the rankings is not the best course of action.

“I think if you try to hold on to something, then it’s a mistake,” he said. “Then the aggressor from behind has the advantage.”

USC’s clash against Oregon will begin at 1:30 p.m. today at the Student Tennis Center in Eugene.

The Women of Troy will then travel to Seattle and face off against Washington at the Bill Quillian Stadium on Saturday. These two matches kick off a four-game road trip for USC, as the players travel to Tucson next Friday for their matchup against Arizona before taking on Arizona State in Tempe the next day.

The Women of Troy will not return home until they square off against Utah at Marks Stadium on April 10.