Women’s Tennis Set for Back-to-Back Action

PHILADELPHIA – Temple women's tennis (5-3) is set for a highly competitive two-match week, opening play against Delaware (10-2) at the Cherry Hill Health and Racquet Club on Thursday, Mar. 17 at 10:30 a.m. followed by a trip across the city to No. 73 Penn (8-6) for a 1 p.m. Friday afternoon matchup.

The Owls

The Owls advanced to 5-3 on the season after splitting a two-match week last week, earning a 4-0 win over FDU on Wednesday before falling to Navy, 4-3 on Friday evening.
Veronika Kulhava has found continued success in singles play, advancing to a perfect 7-0 mark that includes three wins from both the No. 1 and No. 2 spot and one win in the No. 4 spot.
Senior Jamie Wei trails close behind Kulhava, posting a 5-1 mark in singles competition, earning four wins in the No. 2 spot, with a 1-1 record from the No. 1 spot.
Sena Takebe and Evie Wei have proved to be a powerful duo for the Cherry and White, posting a 5-1 record as a pair, with their only loss coming from the No. 1 spot against the strong Navy pairing of Jillian Taggart and Kacey Moore.

Scouting Delaware

Delaware has had a strong start to 2022, working their way into the National ITA Team rankings, getting as high as No. 63 on Feb. 23 after posting six straight wins from Jan. 28 to Feb. 20. The Blue Hens dropped out of the Top 75 as of Mar. 16, after being previously ranked No. 73 the week prior.
The Blue Hens have only dropped two matches, falling first to NJIT, 6-1 followed by a loss to No. 52 VCU, 6-1 on Feb. 26.
Eliza Askarov leads the team in singles play in 2021-22 with a 15-8 mark. Askarova has compiled a 9-3 dual record all from the No. 1 position, with her remaining matches coming in tournament play, where she posted a 6-5 record.
Last year, the Blue Hens advanced to the CAA tournament, where they fell to fourth-seeded Charleston, 4-2 in the quarterfinals.

Scouting Penn

Penn enters the match with an 8-6 record, playing a string of highly competitive teams throughout the season, while currently sitting at No. 73 in the ITA National Team rankings.
Of the Quakers six losses, three have been to highly ranked teams, including a 4-3 loss to No. 11 UCF, a 6-1 loss to No. 22 Old Dominion and a 4-1 loss to No. 27 Loyola Marymount.
Penn is led by Iulia Brygalova in both doubles and singles play, posting a 9-4 mark from the No. 1 spot individually and an 8-2 record with partner Marija Curnic from the No. 1 doubles position. Bryzgalova clocked in at No. 96 in the ITA Singles Rankings as of Mar. 15, while the pair of Bryzgalova and Curnic hold the No. 41 ITA Doubles Ranking.
Last year, the Quakers competed in only two matches due to the COVID-19 pandemic, matching up against two local teams for competition. Penn defeated Drexel on Apr. 8, 6-1 and Villanova on Apr. 13, 4-2.