Box Score PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland women's tennis team put a scare into No. 36 San Diego on Friday but came up short in a 4-2 loss to the Toreros in a West Coast Conference match at the Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center. The Toreros improve to 11-3 overall and 2-0 in WCC play, while the Pilots drop to 5-7 and 0-1 in league.
"We played a very good match against a great team today," said Portland coach Filip Zivkovic. "Our preparation was excellent, we had a good game plan for each player and everyone competed hard. I cannot be prouder of the team, they left their hearts on the court and that is all we can ever ask."
Portland grabbed the early momentum by winning a thrilling doubles point. San Diego cruised to a 6-0 win at No. 3 doubles, but Portland's Sally Pethybridge and Rimona Rouf evened it with a tiebreak win at the top of the order. It came down to the No. 2 position, where Iva Zelic and Angela Schuster overcame a 3-0 deficit to win by a 7-5 margin and give Portland the 1-0 lead.
With the victory, Pethybridge and Rouf extended their win streak to nine matches and improved to 12-1 this season together.
"The 1 and 2 doubles were impressive today," Zivkovic noted. "Their understanding of our system has improved exponentially over the last few weeks and it is showing in our results."
The first three singles matches all came down to the wire. San Diego's Abigail Desiatnikov pulled out a 7-5, 6-4 win at No. 3 over Neli Sunjic to even the score. Elizabeth Goldman gave the Toreros the lead with a 7-6, 2-6, 6-4 win over Pethybridge at No. 2.
Zelic then pulled out a marathon three-setter at the top of the lineup against No. 45-ranked Solymar Colling. Colling won the first set in a tiebreaker and Zelic took a second set tiebreak before holding on 6-2 in the third. Zelic has now won eight straight matches, improved to 11-1 this dual season and is 4-2 against ranked opponents for the year.
San Diego was able to clinch with hard-fought wins at the No. 4 and No. 5 positions. Pilot senior Angela Schuster was ahead 4-3 in the first set at No. 6 when play was stopped.
"Iva continues to impress with her play and grit," Zivkovic said. "Today was her biggest challenge of the season and she played her best tennis in the biggest moments. My heart goes out to Sally, Neli, Rimona (Rouf) and Alex (Dimitrijevic) who each played some of the best tennis of the year and a point or two decided each of those matches. I have full confidence in each of these players, they are great competitors and I am so proud of their effort and play today.
Angela was in a tight one that had to be called, but it is great to see her back in singles and playing well. She has been a big part of our success over the last four years and I am happy to see her back in the lineup."
Portland will look to bounce back tomorrow when the BYU Cougars visit for a 10 a.m. start. Live video and scoring of the match is available at
PortlandPilots.com.
"Tomorrow is another great opportunity against a very good BYU team," Zivkovic said. "We are excited to continue to compete at a high level against some of the best teams in the country."
No. 36 San Diego 4, Portland 2
Portland, Ore. (Louisiana Pacific Tennis Center)
March 25, 2022
Singles
1. Iva Zelic (POR) def. #45 Solymar Colling (USD) 6-7, 7-6, 6-2
2. Elizabeth Goldsmith (USD) def. Sally Pethybridge (POR) 7-6, 2-6, 6-4
3. Abigail Desiatnikov (USD) def. Neli Sunjic (POR) 7-5, 6-4
4. Jordyn McBride (USD) def. Rimona Rouf (POR) 6-2, 6-4
5. Claudia De La Heras (USD) def. Aleksandra Dimitrijevic (POR) 6-4, 6-3
6. Victoria Kalaitzis (USD) vs. Angela Schuster (POR) 3-4 unfinished
Doubles
1. Pethybridge/Rouf (POR) def. De Las Heras/Goldsmith (USD) 7-6
2. Zelic/Angela Schuster (POR) def. Colling/Kalaitzis (USD) 7-5
3. Desiatnikov/McBride (USD) def. Dimitrijevic/Sunjic (POR) 6-0
Match Notes:
San Diego 11-3, 2-0 WCC
Portland 5-7, 0-1 WCC
Order of Finish: Singles (3,2,1,4,5): Doubles (3,1,2)
