NU to Face Three Ranked Foes in California

The No. 53 Nebraska women’s tennis team takes its 9-3 record to California for a five-match road stretch during which it will play three ranked teams, including No. 25 Long Beach State and No. 59 UC Irvine. The Huskers first travel to Irvine, Calif., to face the Anteaters on Wednesday, March 15, at 1:30 p.m.

The Huskers returned home this past weekend in hopes of snapping a two-match winning streak after falling on the road to No. 16 Baylor, 6-1, on March 4, and No. 48 Iowa, 4-3, on Feb. 26.

Wichita State came to Lincoln with a 5-3 record and the No. 81 singles player in the nation in junior Madina Rakhim. The Huskers wasted little time in taking control of the match. The Big Red made a switch in the doubles lineup, playing senior Milena Schulz-Gartner and freshman Kim Hartmann, who have played the entire season at the No. 2 spot, at the No. 1 spot. The previous No. 1 team of senior Ewelina Skaza and sophomore Imke Reimers, who with 17 wins last season rank No. 5 on NU’s single season doubles wins chart, was split for the first time in two seasons. Reimers played with senior Pamela Castillejos at the No. 2 spot, and Skaza played with sophomore Ellinor Zugner at the No. 3 spot.

Coach Scott Jacobson’s move paid off. Reimers and Castillejos made quick work of Ana Ines Exeni and Anna Egorova, 8-1, and Skaza and Zugner pulled out a victory over Jackie Richey and Genevieve Spink, 8-6, to give NU a 1-0 lead heading into singles play.

Reimers, who is ranked No. 95 nationally, got the Big Red rolling in singles play with a quick victory over Wendi Webster, 6-2, 6-2. Schulz-Gartner moved up to the No. 3 spot, her primary spot during the 2005 season. Schulz-Gartner did not take long to adjust playing up in the lineup dominating Torrie Browining, 6-3, 6-3. Castillejos and Skaza closed out the day for the Huskers with wins in straight sets, with Castillejos defeating Exeni, 6-0, 6-4, and Skaza pulling out a win in a tight second set, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

The Huskers shut down the Shockers, 5-2, to record their eighth victory of the season.

NU returned to the Woods Tennis Center on Sunday, March 12, to take on No. 43 Colorado in a key conference battle.

The Buffaloes took an early 1-0 taking two out of three doubles matches. Jessica Vanderdys and Gleisy Torres Torres defeated Schulz-Gartner and Hartman, 8-3, at the No. 1 spot. Nebraska bounced back and dominated the No. 2 spot, with Reimers and Castillejos beating Franziski Jendrian and Monica Milewski, 8-3. After CU took an early 6-2 lead at the No. 3 spot, Zugner and Skaza fought back to tie the match at 6-6. But the duo's comeback was not enough as Ewa Losinski and Jenny Hanson clinched the doubles point for CU with a 8-6 victory.

The Huskers then needed to take four out of six singles matches for the victory. Early in singles play, luck did not seem to be on NU’s side, as No. 95 Reimers was forced to retire in the second set of her match at No. 2 due to an ankle sprain she suffered earlier in the match. No. 63 Hartmann and Schulz-Gartner started a Nebraska rally by quickly taking their matches in straight sets, with Hartmann winning, 6-3, 6-0, over Vanderdys, and Schulz-Gartner dominating Losinski, 6-1, 6-1.

Late match heroics by two seniors made the difference for the Huskers. Skaza, who has been battling a nagging abdominal injury all spring, fell behind early, dropping the first set, 6-0. Skaza then rallied to even the team score, 3-3, by taking the last two sets, 6-2, 7-5. The match was determined by the outcome of the No. 5 match between Castillejos and Franziski Jendrian. Castillejos battled back from a 4-2 deficit to take the first set, 6-4, but fell in the second set, 6-1. Jendrian gained a 5-4 lead before Castillejos took over the match. Castillejos, who had been in 13-three-set matches since her junior season, fought back and took the match, 7-5, clinching victory for the Huskers.

"Once Castillejos took the match to 5-5 in the third set, she cruised from there on out," Jacobson said.

A Look at the Anteaters
UC Irvine enters the match with a 6-7 record. The Anteaters are no strangers to ranked teams, as they have faced 11 in 13 matches, including defeating No. 56 St. Mary’s and No. 60 Loyola Marymount. UCI has a young squad with only one senior among its 11 players. Senior Bela Mijic is a transfer from Baylor and has some history with the Huskers. Mijic played against NU’s Anne Oehme and Schulz-Gartner at the No. 3 doubles spot in the 2003 season. Oehme and Schulz-Gartner defeated Mijic, 8-2.

Sophomore Becky Bernhard is UIC’s No. 1 singles player and will likely face No. 63 Hartmann. Bernhard has struggled this season, recording a 6-12 record.

The Anteaters are led by coach 10-year Mike Edles, who owns a 124-104 career record.

Husker-Anteater History
UIC holds a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series with the Huskers. The two teams last met on March 23, 2003. Then-No. 56 Nebraska suffered a non-conference road loss for the first time since Feb. 6, 1999, as the Huskers were upset by 60th-ranked UC Irvine, 4-3.

In doubles action, Irvine won the doubles point winning two of three matches. Despite the loss, NU was led by Anna Oehme, who improved to 10-2 on the season with a 7-5, 5-7, 10-8, victory over Amy Tranckino at No. 5 singles. Other winners included Gitte Ostermann, a three-set winner over Tiffany Chang, and Pamela Castillejos, who was victorious in straight sets at No. 6 singles.

A Look at the 49ers
Nebraska travels to Long Beach, Calif., to take on No. 25 Long Beach State, who is 11-2 on the season. LBSU enters the match with an 11-match win streak, including defeating No. 24 Oregon and No. 40 San Diego State. The 49ers started the season 0-2 with losses to No. 5 USC and No. 17 Pepperdine. The match with Nebraska marks the 10th ranked team LBSU has faced this season. Freshman Hannah Grady is ranked No. 69 nationally and plays at the No. 1 spot for the 49ers. She is on an eight-match winning streak. Freshman Katy Williams, who is ranked No. 120 nationally, is Long Beach State’s No. 2 player and has posted 18 wins this season. Williams has won 10 of her last 11 matches.

The 49ers are led by coach Jenny Hilt-Costello. She is in her ninth year and has a 127-78 career record.

Husker-49er History
NU owns a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series with LBSU. The two were scheduled to meet last season, but the match was cancelled due to inclimate weather. In 2004, the Huskers travelled to Long Beach, Calif., but fell, 7-0 to then-No. 55.

After dropping all three doubles matches, the Huskers had some tough luck in singles play. Competing without No. 1 singles player Gitte Ostermann, Nebraska lost three super tie-breakers. Milena Schulz-Gartner fell to Nicole Bouffler, 2-6, 6-4 (10-7) at No. 1 singles, Leslie Harvey lost to Kelly Chan, 3-6, 6-3, (10-6) at No. 2 singles, and Anna Oehme lost to Alanah Carroll, 7-5, 4-6 (10-7) in the No. 4 spot.

A Look at the Cougars
Washington State enters the Sunday, March 19, match in Newport Beach, Calif., ranked No. 73 nationally. WSU owns a 5-7 record. The Cougars have had one of the toughest schedules in the country, as they have played No. 1 Stanford, No. 5 USC, No. 8 California, No. 22 BYU and No. 24 Oregon. No. 53 Nebraska holds the edge in this match-up, as WSU has lost to 7 of 8 ranked teams. WSU and NU have played one common opponent, No. 43 Colorado. On Feb. 4, CU defeated WSU, 4-3.

The Cougars’ No. 1 singles player is Ekaterina Burduli, who is ranked No. 84 nationally. She has posted a 14-9 record this season, and has defeated two ranked opponents, including No. 31 Romona But of Maryland But.

The Cougars are led by former Husker Lisa Hart, who ranks fifth on NU’s career singles wins chart with 74. Hart is entering her third season and owns a 19-36 career record.

Husker-Cougar History
The NU-WSU all-time series is tied at one game a piece. The two last met last season on Feb. 6. In singles, senior captain Katie Garcia once again set the tone by winning the first singles point of the day, winning 6-2, 6-0, over WSU’s Aleksandra Stefanova. Gitte Ostermann, ranked No. 19 nationally, defeated Eketraina Burduli in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1.

No. 74 Nebraska blanked No. 68 Washington State, 7-0.

A Look at the Lions
Loyola Marymount is ranked No. 60 in the latest ITA national rankings. The Lions own a 5-6 overall record. LMU is 1-5 when facing ranked opponents, with its only victory over a ranked team coming against No. 56 Boston College.

Juniors Robyn Baker and Serena Fermin and sophomore Pavla Mesterova are ranked in the top 20 in the west regional rankings in both singles and doubles. Mesterova, who is ranked No. 12 regionally, is LMU’s No. 1 singles player and owns 20 wins this season, while Baker is ranked No. 18 regionally. Baker and Fermin are ranked No. 13 in doubles and are the Lions’ No. 1 doubles team. The duo of Baker and Fermin could create problems for the Huskers’ Schulz-Gartner and Hartmann,

The Lions are led by 32nd year coach Jamie Sanchez, who owns a 599-355 career record.

A Look at the Buckeyes
Ohio State owns a 7-4 record entering the match on Sunday, March 19, in Newport Beach, Calif. OSU has faced five ranked teams this season, defeating No. 50 Louisville. The Buckeyes have a young team this year, having only one senior on a team of 10, with six freshmen or sophomores. Ohio State is coming off of a tough loss to No. 37 New Mexico, 4-3.

OSU is coached by ninth-year coach Chuck Merzbacher. Merzbacher has a 130-113 career record.

Husker-Buckeye History
Ohio State leads the all-time series with Nebraska, 2-1. The two teams last met on Feb. 20, 2004. The Huskers fell behind early when Ohio State swept the doubles matches to secure the doubles point. Nebraska struggled in singles play as well. The Buckeyes clinched the victory with wins at the Nos. 3, 1, and 4 spots before NU Milena Schulz-Gartner (4-4) pulled out a victory at No. 2 singles. Schulz-Gartner defeated Jackie Leskovar, 4-6, 6-4 (7).

It was not enough as then No. 48 Ohio State defeated then-No. 71 Nebraska, 6-1.

A Quick Look at the Probable Husker Lineup
4No. 1 singles - Kim Hartmann (15-6): Hartmann started the season ranked No. 36 nationally which is the highest national ranking for a freshman in school history. She is also ranked No. 9 in the singles Central Regional rankings. Hartmann has defeated three ranked players, including then-No. 28 Anca Anastasiu of USC. Anastasiu is the highest-ranked player a Husker has beaten since Gitte Ostermann defeated then-No. 22 Nataly Cahana of Old Dominion in 2003. During the spring, Three of Hartmann’s four losses have come at the hands of three top-40 players: No. 20 Aurelija Miseviciute, No. 12 Zuzana Zemenova and No. 39 Meg Racette.

4No. 2 singles - Imke Reimers (15-5): Reimers has posted eight wins in NU’s nine matches of spring play. As a result, Reimers is now ranked No. 100 nationally, her first career national ranking. Reimers has been hot as of late. When then-No. 57 Arkansas came to Lincoln, Reimers upset then-No. 38 Ela Kaluder in straight sets, 7-6 (2), 6-1. Reimers showed composure in her three-set win over Iowa’s Hillary Mintz, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (6), 13-11. On Feb. 3, Reimers posted her third career 6-0, 6-0 victory as she defeated Lauren Wilson of Air Force. After posting a 6-2 fall singles record, Reimers was ranked No. 21 in the Central Regional rankings and No. 7 in the regional doubles rankings with Skaza. The March 4 loss to No. 16 Zuzana Cerna of Baylor snapped Reimers’ four-match winning streak. Reimers not be 100 percent this week as she sprained her ankle during Sunday’s match with Colorado.

4No. 3 singles - Milena Schulz-Gartner (5-7): Schulz-Gartner is a third-year player who has competed near the top of the Husker lineup throughout her career in Lincoln. As a sophomore, she posted a 20-win season, and as a junior she went 7-4 at the No. 3 spot, where three of her four losses were three-set thrillers. Schulz-Gartner recorded her first win of the spring when she defeated Colorado State’s Jessica Jones, 6-0, 6-3. The senior has been playing well as of late, winning five of her last seven matches. Schulz-Gartner recently moved up in the lineup for the first time this season to the No. 3 spot, where she has gone 2-0.

4No. 4 singles - Vanessa Heute (7-10): Heute saw her first action at the ITA Regionals, where she rolled through the qualifying tournament with two victories, including a defeat of KU’s Brittany Brown, to advance to the Main Draw of the tournament. Heute recorded her first spring victory as a Husker when she battled through an ankle injury and defeated Illinois-Chicago’s Corey Steven, 6-2, 7-5. Heute’s record is deceiving as she has been a victim of three-set matches and two nationally ranked players. She has lost four of five three-set matches this spring.

4No. 5 singles - Pamela Castillejos (11-2): The senior enteres her final season as a Husker as team captain and returns as Nebraska’s most productive player. In 2005, she set the school’s best single-season winning percentage (.880) as she posted a 22-3 record. Castillejos has won eight of nine matches this spring with her only loss coming in a three-set thriller against Texas’ Kelly Baritot, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4. Castillejos posted the team’s only point Saturday with a 5-7, 6-4, 11-9 victory over Iva Mihaylova of Baylor. Castillejos continues to find ways to win as she has won seven-straight matches, including three three-set matches.

4No. 6 singles - Ewelina Skaza (8-5): Skaza recorded more than 40 combined victories in her first year as a Husker. Although she has been plagued by an illness and a slight abdominal injury in the spring, she showed signs of consistency last fall, as she posted a 3-1 singles record at the Lloyd Sokstad Invitational at Drake, including a 1-1 mark against conference foes. Skaza has won four of her last five matches.

About the Huskers ...
4Nebraska has produced eight straight winning seasons.
4The Big Red’s 69 match home non-conference winning streak was snapped by No. 40 Iowa.4Freshman Kim Hartmann received the first national ranking of her career, No. 36.
4Hartmann’s No. 36 ranking is the highest national ranking for a Husker freshman in school history.
4Hartmann’s victory over No. 28 Anca Anastasiu is the highest ranked player NU has beaten since Gitte Ostermann defeated then-No. 22 Nataly Cahana of Old Dominion in 2003.
4The Huskers have a history of starting the season fast. NU has won four of its first five matches for nine straight seasons.
4The Big Red has posted at least a six-match win streak to start two of the last three seasons.
4Nebraska’s preseason No. 38 team national ranking was the highest ranking to begin the season in school history.
4NU’s No. 36 national ranking was the highest NU ranking since April 26, 2005.
4NU achieved the highest ranking in school history when the Huskers were ranked No. 30 on March 30, 2005.
4Both of NU’s newcomers, Hartmann and Heute, entered the season regionally ranked and play at the Nos. 1 and 3 singles spots in the Husker lineup.
4Hartmann’s regional ranking, No. 9, is believed to be the highest regional ranking for a freshman in school history.
4Castillejos’ 22 wins last season marks her highest single-season win total, eclipsing her previous high of 10 victories in 2004.
4The 17 doubles victories by Reimers and Skaza last season rank fifth on NU’s single season doubles wins.
4Castillejos’ 22-3 season record last year marked the best single-season winning percentage in school history at .880.
4With 190 wins in 15 years, Head Coach Scott Jacobson is Nebraska’s winningest and longest serving coach in school history.
4Pamela Castillejos entered her senior season as team captain.
4Nebraska’s 18 wins in 2005 represents its third highest victory total under Jacobson. It also marks the fifth time in Coach Scott Jacobson’s tenure that NU has tallied at least 15 wins.
4Sophomore Imke Reimers’ No. 21 regional ranking marked the first time she has entered the season regionally ranked.
4Reimers’s 6-0, 6-0 victory on Feb. 3 marked the third time in her career she has blanked an opponent.
4The Feb. 5 match with Drake broke a 13-13 series tie and gave the Big Red the edge in the series.
4With the Huskers’ win over Drake, Jacobson became NU’s first coach to reach 185 wins.
4NU’s win over No. 57 Arkansas marked its third home victory over a non-conference ranked opponent in the last two seasons.
4Sophomore Imke Reimers received her first career national ranking on Feb. 22. Reimers currently is ranked No. 95.
4Nebraska’s 15-match winning streak over Missouri State is the second-longest winning streak over a single team in school history. Only a 20-match winning streak over Creighton is longer.
4Baylor is the second-highest ranked team NU has faced this season, only then-No. 3 Texas was ranked higher.
4Hartmann and Reimers hold a team-high 15-wins.
4Colorado marks the five ranked team NU has faced this season.
4NU has faced three ranked teams in its last four matches.
4Nebraska’s No. 53 ranking is its lowest since Feb. 15, 2005.
4Friday’s match with WSU marked the 22nd all-time meeting. Drake is the only non-conference team to have met Nebraska more times than the Shockers.
4Nebraska Reimers and Hartmann's national rankings marks the first time in school history two NU players have appeared in the same national rankings
4NU's victory over No. 43 Colorado marks the highest ranked team the Huskers have defeated this season.
4The Huskers are entering one of the most demanding parts their season as they face four ranked teams in their next five matches.