UCLA
California
Bruins Top Golden Bears in Thriller, 4-3
March 11, 2017 | Women's Tennis
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 28 UCLA women's tennis team evened it Pac-12 record Saturday with a 4-3 upset win over No. 12 California at Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts. The Bruins previously fell to the Golden Bears in a road non-conference match, 6-1, on Feb. 24.
UCLA won the doubles point in a close affair. After Alaina Miller and Gabby Andrews won their match on Court 2, 6-1, over No. 23 Olivia Hauger-Karla Popovic, Courts 1 and 3 each went to tiebreakers. Jada Hart and Terri Fleming clinched the doubles point for the Bruins with a 7-5 win in the tiebreaker after an overhead smash by Hart.
In singles, Cal won the first set on all six courts, forcing the Bruins to play from behind. The Bears won the first singles match on Court 2, with Denise Starr downing Fleming, 6-3, 6-0. Olivia Hauger made it 2-1 Cal with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Jada Hart on Court 3, and a 7-6, 6-0 win by Maria Smith over Gabby Andrews on Court 5 put Cal ahead, 3-1.
Both Ena Shibahara on Court 1 and Miller on Court 4 came back to win the second set after dropping the first. Miller made an epic comeback after being blanked in the first set, winning five-straight games to take the second set, 7-5. But both Shibahara and Miller found themselves down a break in the third set, with the former going down 2-1 and the latter trailing 4-2. Shibahara broke to even it up at 2-2, and Miller won four straight games to take the match, 0-6, 7-5, 6-4. Shibahara broke in the eighth game to take a 5-3 lead and held serve to take the match, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The match came down to Court 6, where Kristin Wiley overcame a first-set loss to win the second, 6-2. In the third, she broke serve and nabbed a 3-2 lead. She and Stephanie Lin traded breaks, and Wiley took a 4-3 lead. She held serve and then served it out for the match, winning 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.
UCLA heads north to battle the Oregon Ducks on Friday, March 17, in its first road Pac-12 match. Play at the Oregon Student Tennis Center begins at 1:30 p.m.
Tennis Match Results
California vs UCLA
Mar 11, 2017 at Los Angeles, CA
(Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts)
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#28 UCLA 4, #12 California 3
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Doubles competition
1. Hart/Fleming (UCLA) def. #28 Jansen/Manasse (CAL) 7-6 (7-5)
2. Miller/Andrews (UCLA) def. #23 Hauger/Popovic (CAL) 6-1
3. Shibahara/Wiley (UCLA) vs. #46 Nelson/Starr (CAL) 6-6 (6-5), unfinished
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Singles competition
1. #3 Ena Shibahara (UCLA) def. #9 Karla Popovic (CAL) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
2. Denise Starr (CAL) def. Terri Fleming (UCLA) 6-3, 6-0
3. #96 Olivia Hauger (CAL) def. #81 Jada Hart (UCLA) 6-3, 6-3
4. Alaina Miller (UCLA) def. Maya Jansen (CAL) 0-6, 7-5, 6-4
5. Maria Smith (CAL) def. Gabby Andrews (UCLA) 7-6, 6-0
6. Kristin Wiley (UCLA) def. Stephane Lin (CAL) 5-7, 6-2, 6-4
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Match Notes:
California 7-3; National ranking #12
UCLA 7-5; National ranking #28
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (2,3,5,4,1,6)
T-3:45
Players Mentioned
