UCLA women’s tennis rallies for close win against Oregon
Senior Catherine Harrison – the nation’s No. 18 singles player – took down Oregon’s No. 70 Kennan Johnson, winning in straights sets 6-2, 6-2. (Ken Shin/Daily Bruin)
By Ishan Ayyalasomayajula
March 27, 2016 6:29 p.m.
UCLA women’s tennis continued its strong play as the Pac-12 championships approach, as UCLA came from behind to defeat Oregon 4-3.
The early going was rough for the Bruins – they dropped the doubles point after falling on courts two and three. The Ducks took that momentum into singles play with a quick 2-0 lead after a victory on court six.
UCLA notched its first point after No. 18 Catherine Harrison downed No. 70 Kennan Johnson in straight sets on court one. The respite was a brief one as Oregon’s Marlou Kluiving defeated sophomore Kristin Wiley 6-3, 6-2 to move the Ducks close to victory at 3-1.
Senior Kyle McPhillips kept the Bruins’ hopes alive with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 comeback victory over Alyssa Tobita. Sophomore Terri Fleming knotted it up at three points apiece for each team after her straight set victory over the Ducks’ Shweta Sangwan.
The deciding point was freshman Alaina Miller’s match with Oregon’s Nia Rose on court four. The pair traded the first two sets and in the third, Miller, after being down 3-4, rallied to take it 6-4 and with it won the match for the Bruins.
As the postseason beckons in the upcoming months, the team hopes to work its way back into the nation’s top-25 teams for a chance at a higher seed in the NCAA Tournament and to host the first two rounds at home.
UCLA heads to the road to face off against Colorado on Friday and Utah on Sunday.
