Injuries Drag Down UCLA Tennis Team

This was supposed to be the year for UCLA women’s tennis Coach Bill Zaima. Not only does he have the nation’s top two singles players, Jane Chi and Keri Phebus, the NCAA tournament will be held in California for the first time in seven years.

But because his team’s injury rate recently has soared higher than that of many football teams, his chance for a first team title has faded even before the May 12-21 tournament at Pepperdine has begun.

“Injuries are part of women’s college tennis,” Zaima said. “It’s unfortunate, but the sport is very demanding.”

Injuries have hampered both of the Bruins’ top two doubles teams.

Susie Starrett, who combines with Phebus to form the nation’s second-ranked doubles team, has been out since early April because of a knee injury.

Stephanie Chi, who pairs with her sister Jane to form the nation’s seventh-ranked doubles team, also has been out since early April because of a shoulder injury.

“These are not season-ending injuries, but we’re not going to be as sharp physically,” Zaima said. “It’s tough, but to the women on our team, they know if each of them shows up, we’ve got Keri and Jane.”

In singles, the sixth-ranked Bruins (14-8) typically gain two quick points from Jane Chi, the nation’s top-ranked player, and Phebus, ranked No. 2.

Phebus, who recently fell off a motor scooter, wore large bandages on her elbow and knee at the Ojai Valley tournament, where she hobbled to the Pacific 10 Conference singles championship last Sunday. Her victory gave Zaima confidence that she will perform well at the NCAA tournament.

The team portion of the NCAA tournament will be held Friday through May 16. Twenty teams will participate in the event, with at least one team representing each of the nation’s six regions. Other local teams that will participate are No. 18 Pepperdine (14-9) and No. 20 USC (8-12).

The 64-player singles draw and 32-player doubles draw will be held May 17-21.

Although Pepperdine’s recently refurbished tennis stadium is small--it has seating for only 1,000--the view of the Pacific Ocean is breathtaking. And the action on the court is expected to be captivating as well.

“I think this is the most wide-open championship,” Zaima said. “It’s going to get really feisty.”

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USC’s Brett Hansen, who won the Pacific 10 Conference doubles championship with partner Fernando Samayoa last Sunday, has had a peripatetic career.

Hansen was the top-ranked player in the Southern California Tennis Assn.’s 18-and-under age group in 1990, when he won the CIF Southern Section championship as a senior at Newport Harbor High.

He played at UC Irvine for two years and was named the Big West Conference player of the year in 1992 after winning the Big West Conference singles and doubles championships.

In 1993, Hansen played professionally, maintaining his collegiate eligibility by limiting his earnings. Hansen has played for USC the last two seasons. This season, he has earned the No. 1 singles spot and is ranked No. 5.

The NCAA tournament will be Saturday through May 21 at Athens, Ga.

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The UCLA women’s water polo team (10-9) will play in the national collegiate tournament Friday through next Sunday at the University of Virginia.

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The UCLA and USC women’s golf teams as well as individual Cadida Kim of Pepperdine will compete in the NCAA West Regional on Thursday through Saturday at Tucson.

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USC will play host to the 1995 national collegiate sailing championships May 30-June 4 at Alamitos Bay. It is the first time since 1988 the event has been held off the California coast.