BOISE -- BYU women’s tennis kicked off a three-week road trip with a rough start in Idaho. The Cougars fell 5-2 to No. 46 Boise State Saturday. With the loss, BYU drops to 4-7 on the season while the Broncos improve to 8-4.

“Boise State’s a good team,” BYU assistant coach Lauren Spencer said. “The girls played well and fought hard but just couldn’t pull it out.”

No. 26 McCall Jones and Megan Price notched the first win of the day with an 8-0 rout of No. 23 Lauren Megale and Pichittra Thongdach on court one. The pairs were slated to play during the fall in the final of the regional championship for a spot at the national competition, but BYU had to default because of the no Sunday play rule.

“For our players, this was their chance to show that they should have gone to nationals over the other doubles team,” Spencer said. “McCall and Megan stayed focused and played aggressively.”

Despite the strong showing from the sophomore pair, Boise State was able to take the other two doubles matches and secure the point.

The Broncos kept the momentum going in singles, quickly recording wins at the Nos. 3 and 4 positions. No. 52 Jones kept rolling, defeating No. 42 Thongdach 6-3, 6-2 to earn the first point for BYU.

Boise State clinched the victory with a straight-set win at the No. 6 spot. Kristina Doerr and Megan Price continued to fight, each forced into a three-set match. Doerr started off strong but fell in the second and third sets giving the Broncos their final win. Price led BSU’s Elyse Edwards by a set before dropping the second. She handily defeated her Bronco opponent in the third to end play at 5-2.

“I was proud of the way the team played,” Spencer said. “Romina fought through a strained muscle and McCall and Megan really used their momentum from doubles to get solid singles wins.”

BYU will head to Arizona next week to take on Louisville Friday and No. 32 Arizona State Saturday.

Results
BYU-2
No. 46 Boise State-5 
Doubles 
1. No. 26 Jones/Price (BYU) def.  No. 23 Thongdach/Megale (BSU) 8-0
2. Jasper/Pietzuch (BSU) def. Doerr/Nedakovic (BYU) 8-6
3. Edwards/Jochimsen (BSU) def. Carney/Hayasaka (BYU) 8-2
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles 
1. No. 52 McCall Jones (BYU) def. No. 42 Pichittra Thongdach (BSU) 6-3, 6-2
2. Lauren Megale (BSU) def. Kristina Doerr (BYU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
3. Bianca Jochimsen (BSU) def. Romina Nedakovic (BYU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Stephanie Jasper (BSU) def. Chie Hayasaka (BYU) 6-3, 6-2
5. Megan Price (BYU) def. Elyse Edwards (BSU) 7-5, 5-7, 6-3
6. Marlena Pietzuch (BSU) def. Elle Carney (BYU) 6-2, 6-4
Order of finish: 4, 3, 1, 6, 2, 5

PROVO -- In its first road match since Feb. 1, the BYU women’s tennis team will travel to Idaho to take on No. 46 Boise State. The Cougars (4-6) will try to keep the momentum from last week’s 6-1 win over Fresno State when they face the Broncos Saturday.

“We’re excited and we know this is a good opportunity,” BYU coach Joey Johnson said. “Our whole team is looking forward to this match.”

BSU has compiled a 7-4 record so far this season, including a 5-2 win over No. 41 Utah this past Sunday. The Broncos’ Pichiitra Thongdach is the No. 42 player in the country, coming in just ahead of No. 52 McCall Jones. Thongdach and Lauren Megale are ranked No. 23 as a doubles team, three spots in front of Jones and Megan Price. The Cougars lead the all-time record 11-1 and fell to Boise State for the first time ever in last year’s 5-2 contest.

“The players have been working hard these past few weeks in practices and matches,” Johnson said. “Our confidence level is slowly but surely getting higher.”

First serve is set for noon Saturday at the Appleton Tennis Center. In the event of poor weather, the match will move indoors to the BOAS Tennis Center.