Tennis picks up first Pac-12 home victory

WSU picked up 11th sweep of season against Utes

Sophomore+Guzal+Yusupova%2C+right%2C+serves+the+ball+during+her+doubles+match+with+junior+Tiffany+Mylonas+against+Eastern+Washington+on+Feb.+24+at+Hollingbery+Fieldhouse.

GEORGE RODRIGUEZ | DAILY EVERGREEN FILE

Sophomore Guzal Yusupova, right, serves the ball during her doubles match with junior Tiffany Mylonas against Eastern Washington on Feb. 24 at Hollingbery Fieldhouse.

RYAN MOSHER, Evergreen reporter

The sounds of shoes scuffing the court filled Hollingbery Fieldhouse on Friday afternoon as No. 31 WSU tennis battled the University of Utah.

In their first Pac-12 home match of the season, the Cougars (18-2, 3-1) captured their 17th doubles point of the season and ultimately swept the Utes (9-8, 1-4) 4-0.

Head Coach Lisa Hart said picking up another conference victory was crucial after the Cougars recent defeat to University of California, Los Angeles.

“We lost to UCLA last weekend so it’s nice to get back and get another Pac-12 win right away,” Hart said. “Always awesome to play in front of our own fans and winning is always fun.”

Sophomore Guzal Yusupova was the first to finish her singles match followed by wins from senior Barbora Michalkova and freshman Michaela Bayerlova.

Junior Tiffany Mylonas was tied with Utah senior Jena Cheng after two sets but because Bayerlova had clinched the winning-fourth point, Mylonas’ match went unfinished.

Bayerlova said that when she was down in the second set 4-2 she refused to give up.

“I focused more and eventually it went my way,” Bayerlova said, “Overall we did a pretty good job, I feel 4-0 is really good …  everyone found a way [to win].”

The Cougars kept their undefeated home record alive and picked up their 11th sweep this year with the victory.

Hart said she was proud of her team’s performance, especially after losing to the Utes last season.

“Really impressed with our players, the way we came out in doubles and then kept going in singles,” Hart said. “Utah is always a really competitive team, one of the most competitive teams we play … so I was really impressed the way we took care of business.”

WSU will face the University of Colorado, Boulder 10 a.m. Sunday. The location for the match is to be determined. If the temperature outside is below 50 degrees or winds exceed 25 mph the match will be held inside at Hollingbery Fieldhouse, otherwise it will be held on the WSU Outdoor Tennis Courts.