PROVO -- Saturday was another great day for BYU women's tennis as the No. 35 BYU Cougars toppled the No. 52 Red Raiders of Texas Tech University on the Red Raiders home courts.
"It was a good road trip for us," BYU head coach Craig Manning said. "We're pretty tired and the girls are pretty beat up, but we played good doubles and we played fantastic tennis in the first set of the singles. There was a massive hometown crowd cheering right in our ears, but we played some really clutch tennis when we had to."
The Cougars started off the match sweeping the doubles competition. Sofia Holden was not able to play with Lauren Jones like they have done all season due to an injury Holden incurred Friday in a match at Arkansas. The status of her knee is unsure at the moment and she will likely get an MRI on Monday. Even though she was missed, Chie Hayasaka stepped up and got the win with Jones at the No. 2 doubles spot.
After taking the initial doubles point, the Cougars continued to dominate the singles competition. Hayasaka and Anastasia Surkova both won in straight sets at Nos. 4 and 2. Kristina Doerr and Dolly Chang both won in three sets apiece at Nos. 3 and 6. Jones lost at No. 1 in three sets after controlling the first set and Jenny Miccoli lost in a third-set tiebreaker in only her second singles match of the spring season.
The win is the fourth in a row for BYU as the team improves to 6-4 overall. The Cougars' next match will be Friday, March 2 in Provo as BYU hosts No. 47 Colorado.
Match Results
BYU 5, Texas Tech 2
Doubles
1. Surkova/Miccoli (BYU) def. Durham/van der Drift 8-4
2. Hayasaka/Jones (BYU) def. Jackson/Wagley (TTU) 8-7
3. Chang/Doerr (BYU) def. Fankam/Potgieter (TTU) 8-3
Singles
1. Samantha van der Drift (TTU) def. Lauren Jones (BYU) 2-6, 6-1, 7-5
2. Anastasia Surkova (BYU) def. Lakann Wagley (TTU) 6-2, 6-1
3. Kristina Doerr (BYU) def. Janet Durham (TTU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
4. Chie Hayasaka (BYU) def. Kerryn Potgieter (TTU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Anne Sophie Fankam (TTU) def. Jennifer Miccoli (BYU) 6-4, 4-6, 10-8
6. Dolly Chang (BYU) def. Maria Jose Andres (TTU) 6-4, 4-6, 10-8
Doubles Order of Finish - 3, 1*, 2
Singles Order of Finish - 2, 4, 1, 3*, 5, 6
* indicates clinching victory
PROVO -- The No. 35 BYU women's tennis team will face two powerhouse teams on the road this weekend as they head to Arkansas to face the No. 48 Lady Razorbacks (6-1) on Friday and to Texas Tech on Saturday to face the No. 53 Red Raiders.
"It's going to be a tough weekend," head coach Craig Manning said. We have to play indoors Friday against a really good Arkansas squad and then play outdoors on Saturday in Texas. We're going to need to play extremely well to get two wins this weekend."
The Cougars enter the match with a record of 4-4 on the year with six of those matches against ranked teams and three against teams in the top 20. Arkansas and Texas Tech will be the seventh and eighth ranked teams on BYU's schedule on the Cougars' way to facing a total of 17 before season's end.
"We always play a tough schedule," Manning said. "We're used to it. The lineups are looking good. We're getting stronger and stronger, we're getting better each day and that is what we are focusing on."
The probable marquis match of the weekend will feature undefeated sophomore Ela Kaluder (No. 40) of Arkansas against BYU's top senior Lauren Jones. Jones is 2-2 against ranked players since the fall season. Her last match against a ranked player resulted in a win for Jones as she beat No. 38 Jessica Zok (Baylor) at the National Team Indoor Championships in straight sets, 7-5, 7-5. Jones two losses against ranked players were both three-set matches.
The next time the Cougars will be at home is Friday, March 2 against the University of Colorado (No. 47). BYU was scheduled to host Boise State on March 3, but due to scheduling conflicts the match has been moved to April 4.