As the fall season is coming to a close, the UConn women’s tennis team will have its last chance to win some regional hardware. They’ll head to West Point, New York for the ITA Super Regionals in their last big individual tournament of the Fall. In the ITA Regionals a few weeks ago, the Huskies showed lots of improvement from last year, and everything is pointing to more improvement this weekend.
Matchups
As for matchups, the draw for the singles and doubles won’t be released until closer to the start time, but the matches will stick to the following schedule. First off, all times for Friday are based on outdoor play. On Friday, Oct. 20, the singles round of 32 starts at 10 a.m. Directly following that will be the round of 16. On Saturday, Oct. 21, the singles quarterfinals start at 10 a.m., this time followed by the opening round of doubles play. On Sunday, Oct. 22, the singles semifinals and quarterfinals will be played, as well at the semifinals of doubles. On the last day of the regionals, Monday, Oct. 23, the singles and doubles finals will be played.
UConn Players to Watch
Freshman Caroline Hinshaw and junior Isabel Petri Bere went on an absolute tear last week at the Brown Invite. They both led the team with 6-1 overall singles and doubles marks en route to a generally successful invite. While Petri Bere may have more experience than Hinshaw, that doesn’t mean Hinshaw won’t be up to the challenge of the ITA Super Regionals. Hinshaw has been playing beyond her years as of late and has proven to be a valuable addition to the UConn roster. As for Petri Bere, she’s slowly made her way up the totem pole during her three years as a Husky and has been an integral part of the success the squad has had up to this point.
It wouldn’t be a complete “Players to Watch” section without at least mentioning juniors Olivia Wright and Maria Constantinou. The No. 1 and No. 2 in singles order, respectively, they had a quiet Brown Invite last week in what’s been an otherwise very impressive season. There’s always potential for some electric play with either of those two on the court, so as keep an eye on them.
What to Expect
While the Huskies slightly underachieved at the Brown Invite, that doesn’t automatically mean they’ll do the same here at the ITA Super Regionals. As stated before, comparing last year’s ITA Regionals to the same tournament just a few weeks ago saw improvement across the board. For that reason, they have the chance to continue to show more improvement here at the Supers. The talent is there with young players like Hinshaw and freshman Victoria Matos, along with veterans Constantinou, Petri Bere and Wright. Playing with this group, anything is possible when it comes to getting big wins. The Huskies definitely can’t be ruled out when it comes to championship contention.
