Saddleback women's tennis head coach Jay Amos was named as the 2007 Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year for two-year college women's tennis programs.
Amos guided the Gauchos (15-3 overall) to a runner-up finish in the Orange Empire Conference and then to three Southern California regional playoff victories in order to qualify for the state championship match. The Gauchos fell to Sierra in the state title match to finish as state runners-up. It marked the first time in school history that Saddleback had reached the state championship match.
He finished the 2007 season with an 86-26 overall record through seven seasons at the helm of the Gauchos. His teams have qualified for the post-season playoffs in five of those seasons.
The Ojai Tournament has been one of the most prestigious amateur tennis events in the nation for over 100 years. This year the Saddleback duo of Erina Hung and Kathy Dennis became a part of history and will forever have their names associated with the grand event after winning the community college doubles title. Saddleback's top doubles team won all five of their matches, including four matches won in straight sets. They were extended into three sets in the semifinals - including a pair of tiebreakers - before winning 7-6, 6-7, 6-2. Saddleback's No. 2 doubles team of Nisa Meineke and Andrea Warren won three straight matches to reach the quarterfinals- including a pair of three-set matches where they had to come from behind after dropping the first set. Meineke and Warren finally fell in the quarterfinals to Jaleh Mazaheri and Heather Morton of Orange Coast College, the duo that Hung and Dennis defeated for the title.
Hung also reached the singles finals, winning five straight matches to reach the championship match. However, a three-set victory over Tiffany Villanueva of Chabot College in the semifinals may have taken too much out of her to allow for a sweep of both the singles and doubles titles. She fell to Katherine Chavez of El Camino College in the finals.
Dennis won two singles matches to reach the round of 16 before falling to Mazaheri
The Saddleback women's tennis team defeated Palomar 5-2 in the opening round of the regional playoffs and then ousted Ventura by a similar 5-2 score in the semifinals in order to reach the regional finals. Saddleback's opponent: conference rival Orange Coast College.
The Gauchos (14-2) and the Pirates (15-1) will meet at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8, on the OCC campus courts.
Orange Coast won the first conference matchup in February by a 5-4 count. Saddleback came back to win the second conference meeting, 7-2, after the match was suspended due to rain and completed in April.
Orange Coast went on to win the conference title (9-1) and earned the No. 1 seeding in the playoffs. Saddleback finished second in the conference standings (8-2) and was awarded the No. 3 seeding in the playoffs.
The winner of the regional final match will play for the state title on Thursday at Cabrillo College in Apto
The Saddleback duo of Erina Hung and Kathy Dennis qualified for the Southern California Regional tennis tournament after the first day of the Orange Empire Conference tournament. Both Hung and Dennis won their first two singles matches to reach the quarterfinals of the conference tournament, qualifying them for the regional event in two weeks. The duo also paired up to win their first-round doubles contest, reaching the quarterfinals as a pair and, again, qualifying for the regional tournament.
Hung defeated Michelle Hoang of Fullerton, 6-0, 6-0, in the first round and then beat Maya Morris of Irvine Valley in the second round, 6-2, 6-2. Dennis defeated Johannes Goldberg, 6-0, 6-0, and then beat Heather Nason of Riverside, 6-1, 6-3.
Hung and Dennis teamed up to defeat Lisa Havich and Rachel Barber of Santa Ana, 6-1, 6-0, in doubles.
The Orange Empire Conference championships continue on Thursday, April 19, at Irvine Valley College and the Woodbridge Tennis Center.
Saddleback lost another nailbiter in conference play, falling to the Riverside Tigers 5-4 in the Inland Empire on Tuesday, Feb. 27.
The score was tied 3-3 after all of the singles matches were played, but Saddleback was only able to win the No. 1 doubles match. Erina Hung and Kathy Dennis teamed to defeat the Tigers in doubles. Dennis also won her singles match to remain undefeated on the season at 6-0.
The Saddleback women's tennis team is off to a 4-1 record early in the schedule, including a pair of 9-0 sweeps over Southwestern and Palomar colleges. The only setback on the Gauchos' record was a narrow 5-4 loss to Orange Coast College in the Orange Empire Conference opener.
Kathy Dennis is 5-0 in singles competition while playing in the No. 2 slot this season and has teamed with Erina Hung to form Saddleback's No. 1 doubles team, as well. Dennis and Hung are 5-0 in doubles while Hung is 4-1 as Saddleback's No. 1 singles player. Summer Wallin is 4-1 in singles play and 2-1 in doubles action.