March 30, 2017
Wrapping up its second lengthy layoff of the dual match season, the San Jose State University women's tennis team hosts Academy of Art University and UNLV in a three-day span starting Friday, March 31.
The Spartans (7-4) host the Academy of Art (12-2) in a 1:00 p.m. non-conference match at the Almaden Valley Athletic Club on March 31. San Jose State wraps up the weekend Sunday, April 2, facing UNLV (12-6) in a Mountain West conference contest starting at Noon.
The contest with Academy of Art originally was scheduled for February 17, but is one of four matches postponed or cancelled either by rain, wet grounds or excessive windy conditions. San Jose State last played on March 16 and defeated Illinois State, 4-0.
The Spartans have a three-match winning streak. #1-singles player Sybille Gauvain is ranked #74 nationally by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). She has a 15-7 win-loss record in singles this season.
Senior Marie Klocker, Gauvain's doubles partner, plays #2-singles and has a 10-6 win-loss record in singles action this season. Klocker heads into the Academy of Art match tied for the most combined career singles and doubles wins at 132.
But the Spartans rely heavily on the bottom half of their singles lineup. Freshman Tamara Culibrk is 16-7 in singles and has 33 overall wins this season. Sophomore Miyo Kobayashi, 14-9 in singles primarily at #6, teams with Culibrk at #3 doubles for an 11-5 doubles record. Senior Gaelle Rey, 6-15 in singles, got back on the winning track against Illinois State and ranks fourth on the San Jose State career wins list with 129.
Academy of Art comes in with a four-match winning streak. The Urban Knights are ranked #11 in the ITA's Division II national rankings. The match against San Jose State will be Academy of Art's second of the season against a NCAA Division I opponent. The Urban Knights lost to Pacific, 4-3.
UNLV faces San Diego State on March 31 before taking on the Spartans. The Rebels have wins in four of their last five matches. UNLV's top player, Carol Zi Yang is ranked #27 nationally in singles.
There is no charge to watch San Jose State home matches at the Almaden Valley Athletic Club located at 5400 Camden Avenue in San Jose.