USF women's tennis coach Cristina Moros said she's optimistic that the Bulls will be a competitive, winning team this season.
But with only three returning players and five freshmen who figure to play important roles, it might take the Bulls some time to reach their potential.
"We're trying to play our best tennis in April,'' Moros said. "And if we need to learn some some hard lessons in the beginning because that's what we need to do to play our best tennis in April, then that's what we're going to do.''
The Bulls, who began the season with three road matches, already learned some sobering lessons. USF opened at Texas A&M, the defending national champion, and it was an eye-opening display.
"I feel like we can be a very, very dangerous team, but I think in the beginning, we might have to take some lumps,'' Moros said. "The experience we had at College Station (Texas A&M), seeing the caliber of team they bring, that was a very impressionable match. I think that made us much better competitively the next day (against Denver).
"But the reality is we have a ways to go. We're starting to get into some matches that are more winnable for us. I think this is the most technically sound group I've ever had. This group knows how to play tennis. Now the players just need experience in the college-tennis setting.''
The Bulls, who open their home schedule Friday at noon against Texas State, have returning experience with junior Melisa Senli, senior Gargi Pawar and sophomore Kelly Vargas.
Senli has begun this season as the No. 1 player, taking over from the experience and savvy of last season's leader, Grace Schumacher. Senli, a native of Turkey who began her college career as the Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Year (2023) at UMass, was 10-5 in singles play last season with the Bulls.
"Melisa is definitely the returner that has played the highest in the lineup and she competes so well,'' Moros said. "I do believe she wants that (No. 1) role. At the same time, it's a lot of pressure on her and she needs the understanding of what you must bring to be there on a competitive basis.
"It's her having the belief that she can step up. I believe that she can. But she needs to believe that, too.''
Pawar, a native of India who was Southland Conference Freshman of the Year (2022) at Incarnate Word, was 10-7 in singles last season with the Bulls. Vargas, a native of Colombia, finished 3-11 in singles play last season. There's also experience from Canadian junior Dharani Niroshan, a transfer from Mississippi State.
But the foundation — and future hope — of USF's program will be how the freshmen perform.
There are fascinating possibilities.
Charlotte Ruud of Norway, who trained at the Rafa Nadal International School in Spain, comes from a distinguished tennis family. Her brother, Casper, plays professionally and was ranked No. 2 in the world (a Norwegian record) in 2022, while finishing as singles runner-up in three Grand Slam events. Her father, Christian, was once ranked No. 40 in the world. Ruud has played together with fellow USF freshman Josefine Falster, another Norwegian.
Margherita Marcon (Italy), Sienna Leeson (Australia) and Karine Kulidjian (San Diego/IMG Academy) will also figure prominently in the USF lineup.
"All of our freshmen had good success in juniors,'' Moros said. "They can definitely play. But as they're quickly learning, junior tennis and college tennis are two very different games.
"What's required of you, day-in and day-out, it's a different deal. It's our job as coaches to make sure they understand what is required. From a technical standpoint, there are no glaring weaknesses. But they are going from an individual sport (in juniors), where you are used to playing for yourself and thinking about yourself, to a team environment. They're beginning to understand that if you have a bad day, your team has a bad day. It's not just about them individually.''
The best news of all?
"All of our young players really, really want it,'' Moros said. "They're competitive. Now it's just a matter of them understanding how they get it and what kind of work is needed to put it all together.''
Last season, the Bulls finished 12-11 and defeated four nationally ranked programs (No. 40 Yale, No. 48 Charlotte, No. 54 VCU and No. 74 Michigan State). USF had a experienced No. 1 player in Grace Schumacher, a four-time All-American Athletic Conference performer.
In a way, the Bulls are starting over with a new-look lineup. But Moros said she loves the program's upside.
"We're seeing a big improvement already from the fall to the spring,'' Moros said. "With the changes in college sports (NIL, transfer portal), sometimes it seems like you're changing your lineup and reinventing your culture every year.
"We do have several new faces. But I had a lot of coaches, particularly in the fall season, come up to me and say how good our team could be. I feel the same way. You can have all the talent and hit the ball as well as you can, but it boils down to putting it together at the right moments and grinding through the tough part of the season. That's what we're learning to do and I believe we will get there and be successful.''
