Last week the No. 17 Virginia women's tennis team drew plenty of confidence from cruising past No. 36 Boston College to begin conference play with a 2-0 record. Now, following a heartbreaking 4-3 letdown against Maryland this past Sunday, the Cavaliers are taking a more humble approach to their upcoming tilts against Miami and Florida State.
"Unfortunately, we're going to have to take a loss like that to really snap us into place," coach Mark Guilbeau said. "It feels awful to lose it, [and] it's going to hurt our season for sure. Hopefully we'll have an opportunity to come back, and the main thing is play good tennis."
The Cavaliers (13-3, 2-1 ACC) will be forced to regroup quickly as two of their toughest opponents to date come to Charlottesville this weekend.
The No. 35 Seminoles (6-5, 1-2) enter the match fresh off of a 5-2 triumph against a Georgia State squad which had dropped only one game in its previous 10 contests. No. 66-ranked redshirt sophomore Noemie Scharle provided a spark for Florida State in singles play by downing the Panthers' previously undefeated freshman Abigail Tere-Apisah in straight sets. Scharle's 6-3 win at No. 2 singles gave the Seminoles a 4-0 lead after three singles matchups.
Miami (11-4, 3-1), meanwhile, currently ranks No. 6 nationally and has been playing superb tennis lately, Guilbeau said. The gifted squad has earned three victories against top-25 foes during its last six matches, including a dominating 6-1 performance against then-No. 11 Clemson.
Senior Bianca Eichkorn leads the high-flying Hurricanes into the conference battle with her impressive 24-6 overall record in singles play. The No. 6-ranked singles player in the nation is undefeated in ACC play and already has collected three ACC Player of the Week nominations during the 2011 season.
"[We] need to be prepared for much more than what we faced on Sunday - no discredit to Maryland," Guilbeau said. "Miami's one of the best teams in the country. We've shown that we can match that, but we've got to do things that we haven't done for a few matches now."
Guilbeau said he believes the Cavaliers will need to fight for every point, focus on their basic tennis skills and shut out negative emotions if the team hopes to get back on track in conference play. The coaching staff also stressed the need for a quick and successful start in doubles play, a feat which the Cavaliers have failed to achieve during their last two matches against Boston College and Maryland.
"I think we just need to come in with our heads up more, not worried about rank or anything," freshman Caryssa Peretz said. "I think we just needed to bring a little more energy to the match."\nIf Virginia fails to demonstrate a greater sense of urgency and against its two ACC rivals from the Sunshine State, Guilbeau said the team might struggle to re-establish its momentum. "There's not going to be anything given to you," Guilbeau said. "I think again that's some of the challenges with some of our players ... If you have one one-thousandth of a percent of that [attitude] in your head against a team like Miami, it will cost the entire team."
The Cavaliers' match against the Hurricanes is slated for 12 p.m. Saturday, while their match against the Seminoles is scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday.
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