Tennis drops first match of year against No. 1 Stanford
Cardinal sweep Cougs to end six-match winning streak to start season
BEN SCHUH | DAILY EVERGREEN FILE
Freshman Yang Lee serves over junior Melisa Ates during a doubles match against Idaho Jan. 12 at Hollingbery Fieldhouse. The Cougars swept the Vandals 4-0.
January 27, 2019
WSU tennis dropped its first match of the season as they fell to No. 1 Stanford 4-0 Sunday in the second round of the ITA Kickoff Weekend in California.
The Cougars (6-1) advanced to the second round after fighting back from a 3-0 deficit to defeat Southern Methodist University 4-3 Saturday.
In the match against the Cardinal (2-0), WSU fell behind early as they lost the doubles point.
Stanford seniors Caroline Lampl and Kimberly Yee, the No. 7 doubles duo in the nation, clinched the point by defeating Senior Tiffany Mylonas and freshman Hikaru Sato 6-2.
The Cardinal dominated the singles matches winning all of them in straight sets to complete a 4-0 sweep of the Cougars. Three of the singles matches did not finish because Stanford had already secured the fourth point. The Cardinal were leading all those matches as well.
On Saturday against SMU, the Cougars started out losing the doubles point to the Mustangs. Sophomore Michaela Bayerlova and senior Aneta Miksovska lost their doubles match 6-1 but Sato and Mylonas were able to bounce back with a 6-4 win.
In the decisive third doubles match, SMU squeaked out a 7-6 victory as the Cougar pair of freshman Yang Lee and junior Melisa Ates fell to the Mustangs.
The Mustangs would carry their momentum into the singles matches, claiming the first two matchups to take a commanding 3-0 lead.
Bayerlova started the Cougars improbable comeback with a 6-2, 6-3 win and Mylonas claimed her match in three sets to pull the Cougars within one point of SMU.
Up first was Mylonas who pushed her game to a third set victory 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 against previous SMU doubles opponent Anzhelika Shapovalova.
Miksovska then took down SMU sophomore Nicole Petchey 7-5, 2-6, 6-1 to tie the score at 3-3.
It all came down to freshman Yang Lee as she battled senior Karina Traxler for the decisive fourth point.
Traxler took the opening set 7-6, but Lee dominated the final two sets to complete the comeback victory for WSU.
WSU will travel to Waco, Texas, next to face Baylor 3 p.m. Feb. 8 at Hurd Tennis Center.
