The women’s tennis team looks for its fourth consecutive winning season under coach George… The women’s tennis team looks for its fourth consecutive winning season under coach George Dieffenbach and to improve on its 10-9 record of a season ago.

Though a winning record is always nice, the Panthers primary goal this season remains to be invited to the 2005 Big East Conference Tournament. Dieffenbach knows the team can get there.

“Next year, the conference expands to include many more teams, but still only six teams will be invited to compete in the Big East Championship. This has to be our year; this is our year,” Dieffenback said.

Despite the winning record, the team dropped its last seven matches after starting the season with an impressive 10-2 record. Dieffenbach maintains that the Panthers losing streak was not a result of his team slumping.

“We were a weaker team last year because we lacked depth. The conference is very good and the schedule is much stronger at the end,” he said.

Dieffenbach acknowledged that there are a couple areas that need improvement this season.

“We are 1-1 this year, and we strive for another winning season,” he said. “The key to improvement, however, will be teamwork and playing as one unified team. We need to practice better and minimize our bad days.”

He believes that another key element to this season’s success is increased doubles play victories.

“It’s hard to win matches consistently without the point you get from doubles,” Dieffenbach said on PittsburghPanthers.com.

The coach has reason to be optimistic with the talent of his squad this year.

For starters, senior Jill Williams is back with the Panthers after taking a season off. Williams had already competed for the Panthers for three years before taking a break.

“Jill has a lot of experience under her belt, and we are happy to have her back,” Dieffenbach said of Williams. “She adds a lot of depth and is a good doubles player. She will be one of the leaders on this team.”

In addition to assisting Pitt in achieving its team goals this season, Williams has set a personal goal. As it stands, the record at Pitt for career combined victories is 124. For her career, Williams has 86 combined wins. Dieffenbach sees the record as something that Williams can realistically break this season.

“I expect her to seriously challenge the Pitt record of 124 combined victories,” he said. “If she can do that, she’s really going to help the team in getting us key points while also helping set a standard for the younger girls to follow.”

Left-handed junior Emily Hughes — who finished last season with an impressive 17 victories in singles play — will also play a huge role in the Panther’s 2004-2005 success. Last season, Hughes was selected as a co-MVP of the team, along with then-freshman Annie Davies.

Davies led the Panthers strong youth campaign, posting 15 singles victories and 14 doubles victories.

“We knew when Annie came in what kind of talent she had,” Dieffenbach said on PittsburghPanthers.com.

It is the combination of Davies and Williams as the No. 1 doubles pairing that Dieffenbach believes will greatly improve Pitt’s doubles standing. Davies’ is also in good standing academically.

Last season, she was named a Big East Academic All-Star, along with junior Becky Emmers and senior Konita Jude, whom Dieffenbach referred to as the “consummate team player.”

The Panthers have a number of girls making their Pitt debut this season. Dieffenbach said that recruiting was good and that the incoming class is very talented. This means that many young players will be expected to help take the team to the next level. Freshmen Michele Petrasko and Leah Friedman both have reason to have high expectations coming into this season.

Dieffenbach greatly wanted to improve his team’s doubles play and made a move in that direction in recruiting Petrasko. Last season, she ranked first in the Middle States Tennis Association doubles rankings. Petrasko also brings with her a fierce competitive nature and an aggressive serve, providing Pitt an added edge.

Friedman, on the other hand, was a singles ace in high school, winning the Pittsburgh City League singles championship for the past three years. Dieffenbach loves her motivation and says that she is very coachable.

Pitt will also debut sophomore transfer Roseanne Friend and junior transfer Sotera Gacad-Cowan. Both will add offensive power and depth to the Panthers.

When asked whom he expected to really step up and make a major contribution this year, Dieffenbach responded, “The whole team. It’s a combined effort. I expect every one of them to contribute not as individuals but as a team. We have unselfish players with great work ethics who I expect will all contribute.”

Pitt will begin the season this weekend with matches at Marshall on Saturday and against Cincinnati on Sunday.