No. 23 UCLA Falls to No. 21 USC

Photo is courtesy of UCLA

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The No. 23 UCLA women's tennis team fell to No. 21 USC on Sunday afternoon in its last regular season match.  With the loss, the Bruins fall to 14-6 on the season and 6-3 in conference play.

Here. We. Go. pic.twitter.com/ym0c2EtEfa

— UCLA Men's Tennis (@uclatennis) April 17, 2016

Sunday’s doubleheader with the men’s teams kicked off with simultaneous doubles play.  On the women’s side, the Bruins and Trojans split sets on courts 2 and 3.  Maia Magill and Kristin Wiley fell to Jessica Failla and Rianna Valdes, 6-2, while Terri Fleming and Alaina Miller defeated the No. 61 pair of Madison Westby and Zoe Katz, 6-4.

On court 1, the sixth-ranked duo of Catherine Harrison and Kyle McPhillips trailed the ninth-ranked
pair of Giuliana Olmos and Gabby Smith, 5-3.  The Trojan duo took the set, 6-3, on an ace serve by Smith to give USC a 1-0 lead.

The Trojans carried this momentum into singles play, taking four of six first sets over the Bruins.  Miller and No. 17 Harrison registered UCLA’s only first-set wins.  The Bruin freshman blanked No. 99 Smith, 6-0, while the Bruin senior edged No. 24 Olmos in the tiebreaker.  USC quickly extended its lead to 3-0 with straight-set wins.  On court 3, Katz downed Fleming, 6-3, 6-3, right after Magill fell to No. 121 Valdes at the bottom of the lineup.

The Bruins would need to win the remaining four matches to come away with the victory.  Miller kept UCLA’s hopes alive when she defeated Smith in straight sets on court 4.  The freshman edged Smith, 7-5, in the second set to put the Bruins on the board.  UCLA now trailed 3-1 with three matches still playing.

Laini! The freshman gets UCLA on the board with a 6-0, 7-5 downing of Smith. UCLA trails USC 3-1 pic.twitter.com/N5gGVZJsL4

— UCLA Women's Tennis (@uclawtennis) April 17, 2016

Unfortunately, the Bruins were unable to keep pace with their crosstown foes.  No. 117 Failla sealed the deal for USC when she downed Wiley in straights on court 5.  With the win, the Trojans clinched the match, 4-1.

Next up, the Bruins head to Ojai for the Pac-12 Championships.  The tournament runs April 20-24 at the Ojai Valley Athletic Club.  TV coverage of the event will be broadcast live April 22-24 on Pac-12 Network.

#21 USC 4, #23 UCLA 1
Apr 17, 2016 at Los Angeles, CA (Buntmann Family Tennis Center)

Doubles competition

1. #9 Olmos/Smith (USC-W) def. #6 Harrison/McPhillips (UCLA) 6-3

2. Fleming/Miller (UCLA) def. #61 Westby/Katz (USC-W) 6-4

3. Failla/Valdes (USC-W) def. Magill/Wiley (UCLA) 6-3

Singles competition

1. #24 Giuliana Olmos (USC-W) vs. #17 Catherine Harrison (UCLA) 6-7 (2-7), 2-2, unfinished

2. #123 Madison Westby (USC-W) vs. Kyle McPhillips (UCLA) 6-4, 3-5, unfinished

3. Zoe Katz (USC-W) def. Terri Fleming (UCLA) 6-3, 6-3

4. Alaina Miller (UCLA) def. #99 Gabby Smith (USC-W) 6-0, 7-5

5. #117 Jessica Failla (USC-W) def. Kristin Wiley (UCLA) 6-2, 6-4

6. #121 Rianna Valdes (USC-W) def. Maia Magill (UCLA) 6-2, 6-3

Match Notes

UCLA 14-6; National ranking #23

USC 12-4; National ranking #21

Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (6,3,4,5)