Women’s Tennis Duo Reigns as Top in the Nation

Ever since the first practice that freshman Maiko Uchijima attended in the fall, Jamie Wei knew she was going to be a great player. Little did the graduate student know, being paired with Uchijima in doubles this season would foster a top duo in the nation.

Including fall competition, the current Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) No. 8 women's doubles team in the nation has 28 wins and only one loss which has guided the Temple women's tennis team to a 15-4 record throughout its spring season so far.

Uchijima arrived on campus in the fall and had to quickly adapt to the lifestyle of a collegiate athlete. The Toyama, Japan native immediately caught the eye of both the coaching staff and her soon to be partner.

"I remember our first practice together with all the freshmen. I saw her and said to Coach Freddy, 'she's a good player, I think we'd work great together as a doubles pair,'" Wei said about Uchijima. "You always see girls wanting to hit super hard, but you don't see many using different tools. But I see them in her. I thought to myself, 'this is going to be a great year.'"

Head coach Steve Mauro had his first glance at the duo playing together when the team began its fall season by competing in both the Villanova Invite and the Cassie Leary Invitational at Penn. Immediately, the chemistry between Wei and Uchijima was apparent as they represented the Owls at the ITA Northeast Regional Competition being only one of four teams standing after the day started with 64.

The ITA Super Regionals were next, and a bigger stage made no difference to Wei and Uchijima as the pair remained perfect fending off teams such as Yale, Princeton, Boston College, and Columbia throughout the competition until the run came to an end in the quarterfinals. The duo amassed a 14-1 record in the fall resulting in their first ITA recognition being ranked No. 5 in the nation heading into the spring season.

Wei and Uchijima have been nationally ranked ever since. The duo currently sits at No. 8 while also being No. 6 and No. 12 at different points of the spring season. In the ITA doubles ranking released on March 21, they moved back to No. 5 after defeating then-No. 5 pair Adel-Byanu Abidullina and Eliza Askarov from the University of Delaware.

"It's a process," Frederika Girsang, who has been with Temple women's tennis since 2009, said about working with Wei and Uchijima since the start. "In the beginning, we were working on certain things and now they have evolved so we can work on formations and other strategies. They know what their strengths and weaknesses are and that helps them be successful."

Wei and Uchijima quickly discovered how to channel those strengths and weaknesses into success on the court. Knowing exactly where to place the ball over the net in order to deceive the opponent and create leverage is one of the key advantages this duo possesses, according to their head coach.

"It may sound like a simple concept, but there is a lot of strategy in where to hit the ball in doubles," Mauro said. "Jamie and Maiko are able to mix it up by using the lob or driving the ball and keep it away from the front person at the net, which is something that not all teams can do."

Both Mauro and Girsang have been with Temple for over 10 years and have cultivated a winning tennis program. Currently, their team has a 15-4 record with a top-ten nationally recognized doubles pair at the top.

In the teams' 19 matches so far this spring, Temple has won the doubles point 16 times. On Feb. 7, the duo of Evie Wei – now a junior at Temple who played a large role in recruiting her sister Jamie to campus - and partner Veronika Kulhava were also nationally ranked at No. 55 for their work in the second position. The pair of Kulhava and E. Wei are 13-3 in 16 appearances this fall, while junior Sena Takebe and freshman Thamara Frasser Kawaratani have seen the most action in the third position with a 9-1 record.

"Doubles have been our strong point this spring. We put a lot into it at practice working on different formations, all while trying to pair up people who complement the other," Mauro said. "So far, it's been a great season. Hopefully we can keep it up and make some noise in the conference tournament."

Now in her last season with Temple, Wei has positioned herself as a leader. She was appointed captain only a few weeks into her career on Broad St., after transferring from Stony Brook where she spent the early part of her collegiate career.

"I knew after the first week of practice once she arrived last year that she had the capability to be a captain for this team," Mauro said. "She's very coachable while always having the team's best interest at heart. It's a pleasure coaching her because you can push Jamie. She respects that – she wants you to push her to make her a better player."

Wei's affection was quickly noticed by other teammates, too. Uchijima came to Temple being familiar with only Takebe and Mia Yabuta because of their shared Japanese heritage. Wei quickly became a role model for the incoming freshman, which slowly helped shape an award-winning team.

"Jamie is a really good player," Uchijima said. "At first, I just tried to follow her and slowly join the conversation. She made me feel more comfortable and welcome on the team as her partner, too."

One goal remains for Wei and Uchijima – conference tournament success. Both say that coming up short against USF in the first-round last spring still hurts. With just one regular season match remaining, the No. 8 duo in the nation will be counted upon to lead the Owls into the conference tournament.

Women’s Tennis Duo Reigns as Top in the Nation

Players Mentioned

Thamara Kawaratani

Veronika Kulhava

Sena Takebe

Maiko Uchijima

Evie Wei

Jamie Wei

Temple University Athletics