IRVINE, Calif. --- Senior Kristina Smith played a major role in UC Irvine's continued success with five victories in six matches, earning her Big West Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week for the second time this season.
The Anteaters dispatched Marquette (5-2), No. 71 Louisville (4-3) and Big West foe UC Davis (4-0) in the midst of their lengthy and compacted homestand.
Smith put points on the board for UCI in all three matches, defeating all singles opponents in straight sets. The No. 101-ranked singles player by the ITA, Smith downed Marquette's Ana Pimienta 6-3, 6-1 and Julia Fellerhoff of Louisville 7-6, 6-2 in nonconference action.
Smith then registered a 6-2, 6-3 win against Megan Heneghan of UC Davis that helped the Anteaters improve to 4-0 in league play.
Forming the nation's No. 55-ranked doubles team with partner Franziska Goettsching, Smith won two of her three doubles matches at No. 1. The UCI duo won impressively, 8-1, against the UCD pairing of Ellie Edles and Tiffany Pham, which solidified their seventh win in the last eight matches.
Smith claimed her second player of the week award of the season. She, Ali Facey and Sarah Gong won in consecutive weeks earlier on. She also improved to 12-3 in singles on the year counting nine wins in a row and three wins over ranked opponents. She and Goettsching also have a win over a ranked doubles opponent under their belts as well as they are ranked 55th in the nation.
The award is the 22nd UCI has earned all-time in women's tennis and the fifth in its last three years.
