SURPRISE, AZ -- Cal State LA's women's tennis team had a strong match from start to finish in its PacWest Championships match against Point Loma Thursday.
The Golden Eagles took two of the three doubles matches and then closed out the contest with three singles victories in a 5-2 win over the Sea Lions at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Center. Cal State LA (12-8) beat Point Loma (10-11) for the second time in three meetings this season.
Cal State LA, the No. 4 seeds in the tournament, will face the nation's No. 1 team, BYU-Hawaii, in a semi-final match on Friday.
The win over Point Loma on Thursday was a big one for the Golden Eagles, who are entered the tournament ranked No. 35 in the nation. The Golden Eagles lost to Point Loma early in the season in San Diego, but won the regular-season rematch in Los Angeles on March 12 and then won again on Thursday in Arizona.
It was a big day for Cal State LA's No. 1 player,
Nozomi Matsuoka, who is ranked 37th in the nation. She had dropped two previous meetings to Point Loma's Nikki Newell, who is ranked No. 23 in the nation, but turned the tables in a big way on Thursday. Matsuoka was impressive in a 6-2, 6-2 win that gave the Golden Eagles a 4-2 lead.
Matsuoka also teamed with
Kayleigh Hall for an important 8-6 win at No. 1 doubles that gave the Golden Eagles a 2-0 advantage.
Hall was also dominant in her singles match, beating Point Loma's Hillary Ramage, 6-0, 6-0, at No. 3 singles.
Cal State LA took the first point of the match when
Pyper Brown and
Elizaveta Sokolova beat Nicole Camaratta and Jen Weissman, 8-2, at No. 3 doubles. Matsuoka and Hall made it 2-0 with their win at No. 1 doubles before
Isabella Lopez and
Iris Raileanu were edged at No. 2 doubles by Ramage and Michelle Torres, 8-5.
Hall's quick win made it 3-1 and Torres beat Brown at No. 6 singles to pull Point Loma to within 3-2. Matsuoka, though, finished off her match with Newell and when Lopez completed a three-set win over Camaratta at No. 5 singles, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, the match was over.
Raileanu had a 7-6, 5-1 lead at No. 4 singles when the match was stopped and Sokolova split the first two sets with Regina von Koch, 7-5, 1-6.
Cal State LA will now face No. 1 BYU-Hawaii, which beat Concordia, 5-0, on Thursday, in a semi-final match on Friday at 9 a.m.
#35 Cal State LA 5, #37 Point Loma 2
Apr 14, 2016 at Surprise, Ariz.
| Singles competition |
| 1. #37 Nozomi Matsuoka (CSLA) def. #23 Newell, Nikki (PLNU) 6-2, 6-2 |
| 2. Elizaveta Sokolova (CSLA) vs. von Koch, Regina (PLNU) 7-5, 1-6, unfinished |
| 3. Kayleigh Hall (CSLA) def. Ramage, Hillary (PLNU) 6-0, 6-0 |
| 4. Iris Raileanu (CSLA) vs. Weissmann, Jen (PLNU) 7-6 (7-4), 5-1, unfinished |
| 5. Isabella Lopez (CSLA) def. Camaratta, Nicole (PLNU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 |
| 6. Torres, Michelle (PLNU) def. Pyper Brown (CSLA) 6-1, 6-0 |
| Match Notes |
| Point Loma 10-11; National ranking #37; Regional ranking #8 |
| Cal State LA 12-8; National ranking #35; Regional ranking #7 |
| Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (3,6,1,5) |
