The regular season is finally beginning for the U women’s tennis team, and coach John Tsumas can finally see how much his team has improved, and if the Utes can contend for a conference title.

The first matchup for the Utes will be against in-state rival Utah State Friday at the Eccles Tennis Center.

After competing in the Utah Invitational last fall, the Utes had quite a surprise, as freshman Ellen Svensson won the Flight 1 backdraw.

Linn Ronnberg and Irini Kotoglou went to the finals of the doubles competition at the Utah Invitational. In their run to the finals, Ronnberg and Kotoglou defeated Utah State’s Sarah Lowe and Caroline Pollock.

Meanwhile, Sheri Esrock looks to be the best singles player on the team, as she played well at both the Utah Invitational and the Central Region Championships.

Like the Utes, the Aggies are trying to rebuild their program, as they went 7-10 last season, and coach Chris Wright believes that his team has the talent to start winning. “We are a little bit better than past seasons, now we have to go out and prove it,” Wright said.

Utah State will look for Lowe to play well, as well as co captain Tracy Bertagna. Pollock and Lowe will look for a little revenge after their loss at the Utah Invitational. Both teams will play after a long break and Tsumas is excited to see how much has changed.

“Utah State is a very deep team and this should be a good match,” he said. “I’m excited to see the two teams play and the progress we have made. “