Temple University Athletics
Saturday, January 12
Hampton, Va.
5:00 PM
Temple University
at
Hampton
Photo by: Zamani Feelings
Women’s Tennis Opens 2019 Season at Hampton and ODU This Weekend
1.11.19 | Women's Tennis
PHILADELPHIA— Temple women's tennis is set to open its spring slate after a strong fall season. The Owls will begin their 2019 season on the road in Virginia as they face Hampton on Saturday, Jan. 12 and ODU on Sunday, Jan. 13.
Temple finished the 2018 spring season with a 10-8 overall record, going 2-1 in the American and 7-1 at home. The Owls recorded seven sweeps during the season, dispatching Farleigh-Dickinson, Binghamton, Rider, La Salle, Lehigh, and Morgan State with scores of 7-0. In regular-season conference match-ups, Temple topped both UConn and Cincinnati, but fell to East Carolina.
The squad had a great showing in the fall, competing in the Princeton, Cissie Leary and Penn Invites. The Owls hosted the Temple Invite to wrap up their fall schedule. Temple won three flight titles to conclude the tournament. Ruoyu Chen earned the title in the Cherry singles flight, Oyku Boz won the Purple flight singles crown and the pair of Boz/Cecilia Castelli secured the Black flight doubles title. Boz went undefeated in singles and doubles throughout the tournament.
The team is led by head coach Steve Mauro, who is in his 11th year at the helm of the women's program. It returns three upperclassmen, juniors Castelli and Kristina Titova and senior Alice Patch, and welcomes a strong five-player class of freshmen and transfers.
"We have five new players, which is the most we've ever brought in," said Mauro. "Of the new players, a couple are transfers with college experience. Between them knowing the game and the guidance of our experienced players, the newcomers know what to expect. I expect at least four of the five of them to start. I think it will take some time to gel, but we are really optimistic about this year's team."
Junior transfers Oleksandra Doroshenko and Chunan Xiang, as well as freshmen Chen, Stefaniya Surikova and Yining Tian will be instrumental to the team's success this season.
"We brought in some very talented players, probably the most talented class we've ever had," said Mauro. "A couple of the Chinese girls were top players in their country (Chunan was No. 1 in China when she was 14) and Jo Jo (Ruoyu) is also a really good player. With the addition of the other transfers, we're going to have a great team."
The Owls are looking to build off their strong fall showing and capitalize on that momentum in the spring. Keeping the team healthy will be key in doing so, as the team suffered several injuries and illnesses last spring.
Mauro believes this team has elements that will allow them to elevate to new heights.
"There is good chemistry on this year's team," said Mauro. "Much better than we've had in years past. One of the things that we have this year that we've lacked in the past is doubles experience. We brought in a couple girls that are strong doubles players. I think doubles will be one of our strengths. In college tennis, you start with doubles, so if you can get the first point there it gives you momentum going into singles. I like our chances to win the conference if we are playing our best."
The Owls will host nine matches this season, with four at the Legacy Tennis Center, one at Healthplex Springfield and the remainder at the TU Pavilion. Temple has a strong 2019 slate, featuring three American opponents (UConn, ECU and No. 22 Tulsa) and three Big 5 teams (Penn, La Salle and Villanova).
"We start off this weekend at Hampton and ODU," said Mauro. "They (ODU) were ranked around 30 last year. Right off the bat that's going to be a tough match. It is a strong schedule, but there is not a team on the schedule that I think we can't beat. We don't take anyone for granted because in college tennis everyone is good."
Temple finished the 2018 spring season with a 10-8 overall record, going 2-1 in the American and 7-1 at home. The Owls recorded seven sweeps during the season, dispatching Farleigh-Dickinson, Binghamton, Rider, La Salle, Lehigh, and Morgan State with scores of 7-0. In regular-season conference match-ups, Temple topped both UConn and Cincinnati, but fell to East Carolina.
The squad had a great showing in the fall, competing in the Princeton, Cissie Leary and Penn Invites. The Owls hosted the Temple Invite to wrap up their fall schedule. Temple won three flight titles to conclude the tournament. Ruoyu Chen earned the title in the Cherry singles flight, Oyku Boz won the Purple flight singles crown and the pair of Boz/Cecilia Castelli secured the Black flight doubles title. Boz went undefeated in singles and doubles throughout the tournament.
The team is led by head coach Steve Mauro, who is in his 11th year at the helm of the women's program. It returns three upperclassmen, juniors Castelli and Kristina Titova and senior Alice Patch, and welcomes a strong five-player class of freshmen and transfers.
"We have five new players, which is the most we've ever brought in," said Mauro. "Of the new players, a couple are transfers with college experience. Between them knowing the game and the guidance of our experienced players, the newcomers know what to expect. I expect at least four of the five of them to start. I think it will take some time to gel, but we are really optimistic about this year's team."
Junior transfers Oleksandra Doroshenko and Chunan Xiang, as well as freshmen Chen, Stefaniya Surikova and Yining Tian will be instrumental to the team's success this season.
"We brought in some very talented players, probably the most talented class we've ever had," said Mauro. "A couple of the Chinese girls were top players in their country (Chunan was No. 1 in China when she was 14) and Jo Jo (Ruoyu) is also a really good player. With the addition of the other transfers, we're going to have a great team."
The Owls are looking to build off their strong fall showing and capitalize on that momentum in the spring. Keeping the team healthy will be key in doing so, as the team suffered several injuries and illnesses last spring.
Mauro believes this team has elements that will allow them to elevate to new heights.
"There is good chemistry on this year's team," said Mauro. "Much better than we've had in years past. One of the things that we have this year that we've lacked in the past is doubles experience. We brought in a couple girls that are strong doubles players. I think doubles will be one of our strengths. In college tennis, you start with doubles, so if you can get the first point there it gives you momentum going into singles. I like our chances to win the conference if we are playing our best."
The Owls will host nine matches this season, with four at the Legacy Tennis Center, one at Healthplex Springfield and the remainder at the TU Pavilion. Temple has a strong 2019 slate, featuring three American opponents (UConn, ECU and No. 22 Tulsa) and three Big 5 teams (Penn, La Salle and Villanova).
"We start off this weekend at Hampton and ODU," said Mauro. "They (ODU) were ranked around 30 last year. Right off the bat that's going to be a tough match. It is a strong schedule, but there is not a team on the schedule that I think we can't beat. We don't take anyone for granted because in college tennis everyone is good."
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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