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By Jeff Agase

Daily Bruin Contributor

MALIBU, Calif. – The UCLA women’s tennis season ended in decidedly unexpected fashion last week at the NCAA Individual Championships at Pepperdine University, but end of the season accolades paid tribute to a solid season of play.

Freshman Sara Walker, ranked second nationally in singles and considered a favorite to win the singles draw, was forced to withdraw from the competition because of a bulging disc in her back.

Walker started off against Mississippi’s Julie DeRoo by dropping the first set 6-2, only to come back in the second set and take a 5-2 advantage. But after losing the next game, her pain was unbearable, and she retired from the match.

Walker could not hide her disappointment from the early exit.

“I was up 5-2 in the second set, but my back was so bad I couldn’t even move,” she said. “It’s frustrating because I’ve worked so hard this year. I thought I had a chance to do really well here.”

Senior Annica Cooper, the Bruins’ other entry in the singles draw, pulled off a first-round upset of Duke’s Megan Miller, the No. 8 seed in the tournament, in straight sets, 7-5, 6-4. Cooper went on to lose to Arizona State’s Karin Palme 6-3, 6-1 in the second round.

With Walker’s injury, UCLA’s No. 1 doubles team of Walker and senior Amanda Basica had to withdraw from the competition, but the No. 2 team of senior Elizabeth Schmidt and freshman Abigail Spears came out with a characteristic gritty first-round win over Purdue’s Jennifer Embry and Shyanna Taheny 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.

The duo lost in the second round to Martina Ondrejkova and Iva Puflerova of South Alabama in an equally arduous three-setter, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.

UCLA head coach Stella Sampras said that Walker’s injury was tough for the entire team to take, especially Walker’s partner, Basica.

“It was just some bad luck,” she said. “It was just heartbreaking. You feel for the players and for the senior Amanda, but it’s not the first time it has happened.”

Despite the early end for the Bruins at the Individual Championships, the announcement of the end of the year honors for several players and assistant coach Rance Brown helped ease the pain of a disappointing conclusion to the season.

Seniors Amanda Basica and Annica Cooper were named to the GTE Academic All-American District VIII first and second teams, respectively, and are eligible for national Academic All-American awards, which are given out June 15. Cooper is also looking to become only the fifth UCLA women’s tennis player to be named All-American four times.

Assistant Coach Rance Brown was named Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Assistant Coach of the Year, and freshman Sara Walker was named the ITA Player to Watch. Brown has been with the Bruins for five years and has provided Sampras, the ITA West Region Head Coach of the Year, with unparalleled expertise and consistent leadership for her team.

“He has a lot of experience,” Sampras said. “It’s great that he’s gotten this recognition because he works very hard, he loves his job and he loves to be here. It really shows in the way he works.”

Walker compiled an overall record of 35-10 this season and won the Pac-10 singles title. She was named Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and selected for the All-Pac-10 first team. The recipient of the Player to Watch honor is a player who is highly ranked, not a senior, and has yet to win an ITA Collegiate Grand Slam Event.

With the departure of three seniors, Basica, Cooper, and Schmidt, Sampras looks to next season with a small degree of uncertainty but a great deal of excitement.

Sampras said that she expects next year’s seniors, Cristina Popescu, Zana Zlebnik, and Jennifer Donahue, to continue the legacy of excellent leadership that this year’s seniors established.

“Those three seniors were so solid,” Sampras said. “We never had to worry about them. They were very responsible young ladies and were such a huge part of the team.”