Women of Troy prepare for Pac-12 championships


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After a win over crosstown rivals UCLA, the USC women’s tennis team is ready to leave for Ojai, Calif., to compete in the Pac-12 championships from Wednesday until Sunday. The Women of Troy are seeking their first Pac-12 title since 1985.

The No. 19 Women of Troy are currently undefeated in the Pac-12 with a 7-0 record. Overall they are 12-4 on the season, with the last loss coming at the hands of UCLA on Feb. 25.

The Trojans currently have three players in the singles rankings. At No. 24 is senior Giuliana Olmos. The senior has an 11-3 record on the season and has a perfect 5-0 record in conference matches, with all wins coming from the top spot. At No. 115 is freshman Rianna Valdes, followed by sophomore Madison Westby at No. 116.

In the doubles field the Women of Troy are led by Olmos and her partner, sophomore Gabby Smith, who are ranked No. 7 in the country. They are followed by Westby and junior Zoe Katz, ranked No. 80 in the country.

The Women of Troy will face No. 13 Stanford (13-5, 8-1) to decide the Pac-12 champion. It’s the first meeting between the two teams, as their previous match on March 11 was canceled due to weather conditions.

Stanford upset Cal last week 4-3 to hand the top-ranked Golden Bears their first loss of the season and set up Wednesday’s title match.

In singles, four players are ranked nationally. Junior Carol Zhao is currently at No. 33, followed by junior Taylor Davidson at No. 40. Junior Caroline Doyle is currently ranked at No. 82, followed by senior Krista Hardebeck at No. 93.

In doubles, Doyle and Davidson and are currently ranked No. 5 in the nation. Hardebeck also enjoys a spot in the doubles ranking, currently at No. 67 with freshman Caroline Lampl.

On Thursday, the singles action will start. The format consists of a 32-player draw, with three players from each of the top-10 schools and two players from the 11th-place team. The Women of Troy will be represented by Olmos, Westby and Katz. The last Trojan to win the singles title is Amanda Fink, who was crowned back in 2009.

The doubles draw will start on Friday. The format is a 16-team draw. Each school will have its top pair, plus five additional pairs selected by the Draw Committee. USC will have both Olmos/Smith and Katz/Westby in the draw. Olmos won the doubles crown in 2014, when she partnered with former Trojan Kaitlyin Christian.