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#20 UCF vs. Georgia Southern |
#20 UCF vs. Stetson |
#20 UCF at #15 Florida State |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF women’s tennis team starts their season with a double header this Friday at the UCF Collegiate Tennis Center at the USTA National Campus. The Knights will play three matches in three days, beginning on Friday as they take on Georgia Southern and Stetson at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. UCF rounds out the weekend on the road against No. 15 FSU.
1. Building on history
The Knights have found success under the direction of head coach Bryan Koniecko. Through his first two seasons, Koniecko has led the Black and Gold to a 33-14 record, good enough for a .702 winning percentage. Twenty of those wins came last season which helped propel UCF to earn their first ever at-large berth in the NCAA tournament. The Knights defeated FIU in the first round before losing in the next round of the tournament to the University of Miami.
UCF ended last season ranked No. 22 in the nation and will open the 2019 campaign ranked No. 20. The highest the Knights have ever been ranked was No. 19, which was accomplished last season on April 10.
2. Defending home court
UCF is 23-6 on home court during the Koniecko era. They won 14 of their 15 matches on home court last season and look to carry over their winning ways into their 2019 season. Koniecko and his team look to put up another impressive record at the USTA National Campus this spring.
This season will see some quality opponents come to visit the Knights at the UCF Collegiate Tennis Center at the USTA National Campus. Florida will take a trip south for College Match Day on Feb. 24. The War on I-4 travels east to Orlando on April 13 as the Knights look to win back to back meetings with the Bulls.
3. Returners
The Knights retain reigning American Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Year Rebeka Stolmar. She went 21-2 in her first season and looks to carry that momentum into her sophomore year. Ksenia Kuznetsova was a part of the first ever at-large bid for the NCAA Doubles Championship and returns to the Black and Gold for her sophomore season. Natalia Serrano is the only senior on the 2019 roster and will play a large leadership role both on and off the court as this young team develops.
4. Newcomers
UCF brings in six new faces this season. Freshmen Valentina Martin, Marie Mattel, Nandini Sharma, Domenika Turkovic and Valeriya Zeleva all make their collegiate debuts this season. Turkovic was the No. 1 ranked junior player in Croatia and won the Croatian Doubles National Junior Championship. Zeleva's highest junior ranking was No. 28. She also defeated the No. 1 junior ranked player in the WTA Top 250. The Knights added Sara Culbertson as a transfer from the University of Miami, who went 7-3 in singles competitions last season.
5. This weekend’s opposition
The Knights open their 2019 slate on Friday with a double header against Georgia Southern and Stetson. Georgia Southern finished last season with a 14-7 mark while Stetson finished with a 13-9 record. On Sunday, the Knights face their first ranked opponent of the year as they travel to visit No. 15 Florida State. FSU has already defeated Mercer and FAU by 7-0 sweeps.