May 2, 2013
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By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - With a 14-8 record, the UCF women's tennis team completed 2012-13 with its most victories dating back to the 1999-00 campaign. And a pair of Knights, Caroline Eberhart in fourth and Genevieve Lorbergs in ninth, climbed on to the single-season wins chart with Lorbergs being voted on to the All-Conference USA First Team.
UCF certainly has a lot to look forward to next year as it hopes to build on its successful season. But before moving on, head coach Stephanie Nickitas chatted with UCFAthletics.com about 2012-13.
Q: Your program experienced a lot of success this year. What were you happy with the most from your team?
A: "It's hard to pick out one thing. Many factors led to our success. We were fit and conditioned well, which gave us a mental edge through the long season. We had solid leadership from Genevieve Lorbergs and Jenna Doerfler. The team was very coachable and they were ready to compete."
Q: Lorbergs really turned things up in the spring, so what was the key factor in her success?
A: "I'm really proud of how things came together for Gen. Everything just started to fall in line for her. It just clicked. Over the past few years we gave her many tools to work with. She's extremely talented and athletic, but this year the mental side kicked in and she learned how to use all her tools. She matured mentally, her focus level went up tremendously and she was very successful as a result."
Q: How much of an impact will it be to lose Jenna Doerfler, who came here as a local product and played a ton of matches starting as a freshman?
A: "Jenna has meant so much to this team both on and off the court. She of course played and won a ton of matches and was always a leader for us. But she and her family contributed so much behind the scenes as well. Having a local player with such a close family translated into our team becoming more family. Jenna has been invaluable as a player and as a person. She will definitely be missed."
Q: The junior class also continuously delivered this season. How pleased were you with their results, and what do they still have to work on when they become seniors next year?
A: "They need to step up and lead. Plain and simple. We won't have any juniors so as the two seniors, Courtney Griffith and Josephine Haraldson need to lead this team where they want it to go. They need to set the tone and take charge. If they can do this well, we will have a very successful season."
Q: You had two freshmen in the starting lineup and they both had great seasons. How did you feel about their performance?
A: "Both Caroline Eberhart and Sofia Baptista did a great job this year. They made some huge strides. From being so sore and tired for most of September and October because of fitness training, they really stepped up in the spring. Both played singles and doubles and matured a lot. Caroline had a great run accumulating 25 singles wins which was amazing."