UCLA
USC
Women's Tennis Falls to Visiting USC
March 01, 2019 | Women's Tennis
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 5 UCLA women's tennis team fell to No. 32 USC 4-1 in a non-conference match Friday at Los Angeles Tennis Center.
USC got on the board first, winning a close doubles competition. Jada Hart momentarily pulled the Bruins (7-2) even with a dominant performance on the top court, but the Trojans (6-2) eventually prevailed with three singles victories.
The 14th-ranked UCLA pair of Elysia Bolton and Jada Hart went up a break on Becca Weissmann and Danielle Willson at 4-2 on Court 2 and used that on the way to a 6-4 decision and the first win of the day. Bolton-Hart improved to 16-5 on the year with the win.
The Trojans pulled even on Court 3, where their pair of Constance Branstine and Estella Jaeger jumped out to a 4-1 lead over No. 38 Abi Altick and Alaina Miller. The UCLA pair countered with a break and found itself down 3-4, but Branstine and Jaeger took the final two games.
That left it up to the top court, where the UCLA combination of Gabby Andrews and Ayan Broomfield picked up an early break for a 3-1 lead. Angela Kulikov and Rianna Valdes answered with four straight games, though, for a 5-3 advantage. A late break by the Bruin pair could not turn it back around, as Kulikov-Valdes gave USC the day's first point.
The Trojans carried their momentum into singles play, where they tallied four first-set wins.
Hart did her part with a commanding performance on the top court. Playing against No. 34 Salma Ewing, the redshirt junior cruised to a 6-0 first set. Ewing took the first two games of the second set, but that did not faze Hart. The Bruin won the next six games and the match to tie the overall score at 1-1. Hart improved to 2-1 on the dual-match season, with each of her wins coming against top-45 players.
No. 120 Weissmann put Miller behind the eight ball with a 6-0 first set on Court 5. The Bruin recovered with two of the first three games in the second set, but Weissmann worked her way back to a 6-4 win and the Trojans' second point of the day.
On Court 3, No. 112 Broomfield took two of the first three games before Valdes answered with five of the next six to earn the early edge. The Trojan never trailed in the second set, posting mirror-image 6-3 performances to extend the lead to 3-1.
The overall result was ultimately decided on Court 2, where Kulikov topped No. 11 Bolton with a 6-3 first set. UCLA's freshman charged into the second set with a 4-1 lead, but Kulikov fought back for a 7-5 victory to clinch the match.
The Bruins will open Pac-12 play Friday, March 8 with a visit to Arizona State. First serve from Whiteman Tennis Center will occur at 12:30 p.m., PT.
Tennis Match Results
USC vs UCLA
3/1/2019 at Los Angeles, CA
(Los Angeles Tennis Center)
#32 USC 4, #5 UCLA 1
Singles competition
1. Jada Hart (UCLA) def. #34 Salma Ewing (USC) 6-0, 6-2
2. Angela Kulikov (USC) def. #11 Elysia Bolton (UCLA) 6-3, 7-5
3. Rianna Valdes (USC) def. #112 Ayan Broomfield (UCLA) 6-3, 6-3
4. Abi Altick (UCLA) vs. Ana Neffa (USC) 2-6, 4-5, unfinished
5. #120 Becca Weissmann (USC) def. Alaina Miller (UCLA) 6-0, 6-4
6. Taylor Johnson (UCLA) vs. Danielle Willson (USC) 6-2, 5-7, 0-2, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. Angela Kulikov/Rianna Valdes (USC) def. #8 Gabby Andrews/Ayan Broomfield (UCLA) 6-4
2. #14 Elysia Bolton/Jada Hart (UCLA) def. Becca Weissmann/Danielle Willson (USC) 6-4
3. Constance Branstine/Estella Jaeger (USC) def. #38 Abi Altick/Alaina Miller (UCLA) 6-3
Match Notes:
USC 6-2; National ranking #32
UCLA 7-2; National ranking #5
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (1,5,3,2)
T-1:53
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,3,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
1,5,3,2
Players Mentioned
