After its grueling non-conference slate, No. 10 Stanford women’s tennis team (7-2) will finally begin Pac-12 play this weekend as they host unranked Utah (3-6) and No. 47 Colorado (9-2).

It will be a bit of a respite for the Cardinal, who faced top-20 opponents in five of its last seven matches. Despite an excellent 7-0 start to the season, including impressive victories against then No. 19 Notre Dame, No. 11 Vanderbilt and No. 16 Duke, the team lost its last two non-conference matches in heartbreaking fashion to No. 2 Florida and No. 8 Cal.

The final score of both losses was 4-3, though either match could have easily swung the other way. The Cardinal were down 3-1 against Florida, but battled back with upset victories by Carol Zhao, who defeated the sixth-ranked singles player in the country, and Taylor Davidson, who came from behind to defeat the No. 3 player in the country in a thrilling third-set tiebreaker. It was for naught, however, as the Cardinal’s Caroline Doyle was edged in the third set of the final match of the day.

This weekend’s match against Cal unfolded in much the same fashion: down 3-1, the day was looking dark, as Cal appeared to be cruising towards the final point needed for victory on Court 1, where the Bears’ No. 2 Maegan Manasse had won the first set against No. 4 Carol Zhao, 6-2. In typical Comeback Cardinal fashion, however, Zhao stormed back to take the second set and eventually the match in a thrilling third set tiebreaker. Again, however, her valiant effort turned out not to be enough, as Stanford fell on Court 6, handing the victory to Cal.

With these two losses in the books, the Cardinal might appear weaker on paper than they were last year when they opened conference play undefeated and remained so until April. However, this year’s team has proved that it can hang with the best in the country. In a loaded Pac-12, the Cardinal will have to rely heavily on their steadfast sophomore trifecta of Zhao, Davidson and Doyle.

The classmates occupy the top three spots for Stanford and are all ranked within the top-25 in the country. No. 4 Zhao, who plays in the top spot for the Cardinal, has yet to lose a match this season. Meanwhile, No. 13 Davidson and No. 22 Doyle have both dropped only one dual match this year.

Stanford’s depth at the top of the lineup is as good as any in the Pac-12, if not better. Krista Hardebeck, Ellen Tsay and Lindsey Kostas complete the lineup at the No. 4, 5 and 6 spots. The three upperclassmen bring veteran experience to the team as the only remaining members of the 2013 National Championship squad. Tsay in particular has been a rock for Stanford throughout her career, as she boasts a 50-15 career dual-match record.

This weekend should not be taken lightly, however, as it provides the final tune-up for the team going into the real meat of conference play: a trip to Los Angeles to battle No. 12 UCLA and No. 3 USC in two weeks’ time. Up first is Utah on Friday; the Utes are currently riding a two-game winning streak, with their most recent victory coming in an upset against No. 55 Marshall.

The next day it will be Colorado’s turn to visit the Taube Family Tennis Stadium. Colorado’s 9-2 record is a little specious, too, as they have only defeated one quality opponent, No. 31 New Mexico. Their only match against a top-25 team was a loss to No. 23 Wichita State last month.

However, things are never easy in the Pac-12, arguably the nation’s most competitive conference. With Cal, USC and UCLA all representing legitimate NCAA title contenders, the Cardinal have their work cut out for them on their road to an unprecedented 18th national championship.

Contact Neel Ramachandran at neelr ‘at’ stanford.edu and Paul Steenkiste at pws ‘at’ stanford.edu.