Jan. 30, 2010
SAN DIEGO - The No. 42 San Diego State women's tennis team dropped a 5-2 decision to visiting and No. 58 UC Irvine Saturday afternoon at Aztec Tennis Center. The loss puts the Aztecs at 2-1 on the season, while the Anteaters improve to 1-1.
The day started on a positive note as SDSU earned the doubles point out of the gate by winning at the top two positions, but it surely was not a walk in the park. UCI had the first team off the court when Brooke Bartlett and Kristina Smith downed Julia Wais and Emma Cioffi, 8-4, putting the Aztecs in a bind. San Diego State, however, responded with a tough 8-6 win by Alicia Aguilar and Julia Trunk at No. 2 and the pair was followed by Roxanne Ellison and Sierra Ellison's 8-5 victory over Courtney Byron and Stephanie Hammel at No. 1, giving the Scarlet and Black the early 1-0 lead.
In singles play, the Anteaters crept back into the match and tied it at 1-1 when Smith defeated Cioffi at No. 6, 6-3, 6-1. The SDSU lead soon became a deficit when Byron followed Smith's lead by beating Aguilar in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
The Aztecs fought back to tie the score at 2-2 when Sierra Ellison emerged victorious over Rebecca Kwan, 6-4, 6-4, leaving the dual match to a best-of-three contest with matches still going at Nos. 1, 2 and 4.
Unfortunately for San Diego State, UCI swept the remaining three matches to take the 5-2 decision. Bartlett was a 6-3, 7-5 winner over Roxanne Ellison at No. 4 and April Bishart clinched the victory for the Anteaters after defeating Wais, 7-5, 7-5. The last match saw 109th-ranked Hammel down Trunk in three sets, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, to put the final touches on the afternoon.
SDSU returns to the court on Saturday, Feb. 6, when it takes on Portland in a neutral-site contest in Seattle, Wash. First serve is set for 10 a.m. PT.
#58 UC Irvine 5, #42 San Diego State 2
Aztec Tennis Center (San Diego, Calif.)
Doubles
1. Roxanne Ellison/Sierra Ellison (SDSU) def. Courtney Byron/Stephanie Hammel (UCI), 8-5
2. Alicia Aguilar/Julia Trunk (SDSU) def. Hannah Holladay/Rebecca Kwan (UCI), 8-6
3. Brooke Bartlett/Kristina Smith (UCI) def. Julia Wais/Emma Cioffi (SDSU), 8-4
San Diego State wins doubles point.
Singles
1. #109 Stephanie Hammel (UCI) def. Julia Trunk (SDSU), 4-6, 6-1, 6-2
2. April Bishart (UCI) def. Julia Wais (SDSU), 7-5, 7-5
3. Courtney Byron (UCI) def. Alicia Aguilar (SDSU), 6-4, 6-4
4. Brooke Bartlett (UCI) def. Roxanne Ellison (SDSU), 6-3, 7-5
5. Sierra Ellison (SDSU) def. Rebecca Kwan (UCI), 6-4, 6-4
6. Kristina Smith (UCI) def. Emma Cioffi (SDSU), 6-3, 6-1
Order of finish
Doubles: 3, 1, 2
Singles: 6, 3, 5, 4, 2*, 1
*clinching match