OJAI, Calif. – The Sun Devil women's tennis team couldn't hold off two-seed UCLA in the Pac-12 semifinal, dropping the match 4-1, Saturday in Ojai, California.
"It was a tough one to lose today, but overall it was a great college match," coach Sheila McInerney said. "I think a match like this will make our young program better, though."
While ASU dropped the match, it was a better showing from the Devils than their previous outing against the Bruins, a dual-match the Devils dropped 4-0.
ASU got off to a solid start in doubles as they took the point from the two-seed with strong showings from the duos of Lauryn John-Baptiste and Ilze Hattingh, and Nicole Fossa Huergo and Sasa Klanecek.
"The atmosphere was really intense, which made it a super exciting match," McInerney said. "We played really well in doubles, but give credit to UCLA for jumping on us in singles, winning the first set on five courts."
No. 15 John-Baptiste/Hattingh added a huge win to the resume as they took down the No. 6 Fleming/Hart, 6-2, on court one, a stark contrast to a 6-1 defeat they suffered in their previous meeting.
The Devils went into singles play up 1-0, but UCLA quickly regained the lead as they won on courts four and six, then made it 3-1 with a win on court two.
The match came down to the final three courts and two were in the third set.
Nicole Fossa Huergo, who clinched Friday's quarterfinal match with USC, fought back to force a third set after dropping the first one 6-1. She won the second set 6-2, then found herself up 6-5 in the third before the match was called.
"I was happy to see Nicole and Lauryn bounce back and force third sets," McInerney said. "It was great to see Sasa play well, too."
John-Baptiste also forced a third set, Blanking No. 14 Ena Shibahara in the second set. She then fell 6-3 in the third and UCLA clinched the match to advance to the Pac-12 Championships where they will face Stanford.
While the Devils' Pac-12 campaign is complete, ASU awaits their fate for the NCAA Team and Singles and Doubles tournaments. Seeding for the regionals will be announced Tuesday in a selection show at 2 p.m.
"We're excited to build on what we did in the tournament and we're excited to get ready for. NCAAs," McInerney said.
Arizona State: 1
UCLA: 4
DOUBLES:
1. Ilze Hattingh/Lauryn John-Baptiste, ASU def. Terri Fleming/Jada Hart, UCLA – 6-2
2. Tereza Kolarova/Savannah Slaysman, ASU def. Gabby Andrews/Ayan Broomfield, UCLA – 6-4
3. Alaina Miller/Ena Shibahara, UCLA def. Nicole Fossa Huergo/Sasa Klanecek, ASU – 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
SINGLES:
1. Ena Shibahara, UCLA def. Lauryn John-Baptiste, ASU – 2-1 (6-1, 0-6, 6-3)
2. Jada Hart, UCLA def. Ilze Hattingh, ASU – 2-0 (6-4, 6-4)
3. Nicole Fossa Huergo, ASU vs. Terri Fleming, UCLA – 1-6, 6-2, 6-5 Abandoned
4. Abi Altick, UCLA def. Savannah Slaysman, ASU – 2-0 (6-0, 6-1)
5. Sasa Klanecek, ASU vs. Ayan Broomfield, UCLA – 7-5, 5-5 Abandoned
6. Alaina Miller, UCLA def. Tereza Kolarova, ASU – 2-0 (6-2, 6-3)
Order of finish: 4, 6, 2, 1
"It was a tough one to lose today, but overall it was a great college match," coach Sheila McInerney said. "I think a match like this will make our young program better, though."
While ASU dropped the match, it was a better showing from the Devils than their previous outing against the Bruins, a dual-match the Devils dropped 4-0.
ASU got off to a solid start in doubles as they took the point from the two-seed with strong showings from the duos of Lauryn John-Baptiste and Ilze Hattingh, and Nicole Fossa Huergo and Sasa Klanecek.
"The atmosphere was really intense, which made it a super exciting match," McInerney said. "We played really well in doubles, but give credit to UCLA for jumping on us in singles, winning the first set on five courts."
No. 15 John-Baptiste/Hattingh added a huge win to the resume as they took down the No. 6 Fleming/Hart, 6-2, on court one, a stark contrast to a 6-1 defeat they suffered in their previous meeting.
The Devils went into singles play up 1-0, but UCLA quickly regained the lead as they won on courts four and six, then made it 3-1 with a win on court two.
The match came down to the final three courts and two were in the third set.
Nicole Fossa Huergo, who clinched Friday's quarterfinal match with USC, fought back to force a third set after dropping the first one 6-1. She won the second set 6-2, then found herself up 6-5 in the third before the match was called.
"I was happy to see Nicole and Lauryn bounce back and force third sets," McInerney said. "It was great to see Sasa play well, too."
John-Baptiste also forced a third set, Blanking No. 14 Ena Shibahara in the second set. She then fell 6-3 in the third and UCLA clinched the match to advance to the Pac-12 Championships where they will face Stanford.
While the Devils' Pac-12 campaign is complete, ASU awaits their fate for the NCAA Team and Singles and Doubles tournaments. Seeding for the regionals will be announced Tuesday in a selection show at 2 p.m.
"We're excited to build on what we did in the tournament and we're excited to get ready for. NCAAs," McInerney said.
Arizona State: 1
UCLA: 4
DOUBLES:
1. Ilze Hattingh/Lauryn John-Baptiste, ASU def. Terri Fleming/Jada Hart, UCLA – 6-2
2. Tereza Kolarova/Savannah Slaysman, ASU def. Gabby Andrews/Ayan Broomfield, UCLA – 6-4
3. Alaina Miller/Ena Shibahara, UCLA def. Nicole Fossa Huergo/Sasa Klanecek, ASU – 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
SINGLES:
1. Ena Shibahara, UCLA def. Lauryn John-Baptiste, ASU – 2-1 (6-1, 0-6, 6-3)
2. Jada Hart, UCLA def. Ilze Hattingh, ASU – 2-0 (6-4, 6-4)
3. Nicole Fossa Huergo, ASU vs. Terri Fleming, UCLA – 1-6, 6-2, 6-5 Abandoned
4. Abi Altick, UCLA def. Savannah Slaysman, ASU – 2-0 (6-0, 6-1)
5. Sasa Klanecek, ASU vs. Ayan Broomfield, UCLA – 7-5, 5-5 Abandoned
6. Alaina Miller, UCLA def. Tereza Kolarova, ASU – 2-0 (6-2, 6-3)
Order of finish: 4, 6, 2, 1