DAVIS, Calif. — Women's tennis gears up for an Aggie-Aggie showdown at the Marya Welch Tennis Center on Friday, hosting Utah State in the inaugural meeting between the two programs, before traveling to St. Mary's on Saturday in a rescheduled match from last week.

UC Davis heads into the weekend with a 3-7 overall record, with Nikita Pradeep remaining as the front-runner in both singles and doubles. Pradeep is on a 12-match win streak when playing at home, and is 7-2 in dual matches this year, all at the No. 1 singles spot. Pradeep and partner Shirley Hall lead the team with a 4-3 dual record, competing at No. 2 doubles.

Hall has split her time between No. 3 and No. 5 singles, and carries an even 5-5 record into Friday's matchup against the Aggies, while Sara Tsukamoto follows closely behind with a 4-5 record at No. 2 singles. 

The Aggies will host the Aggies on Friday at 2 PM at the Marya Welch Tennis Center, before hitting the road to St. Mary's for a 1 PM start on Saturday, hosted at the Moraga Country Club.

AGGIES VS AGGIES
The Utah State Aggies dropped the doubles point at San Francisco before storming back for a 5-2 victory on Tuesday to improve to 5-7 overall. Utah State is led by Sidnee Lavatai at the bottom of the singles lineup; Lavatai carries a 7-3 mark in dual matches, and a team-high 13 wins overall. Alexandra Pisareva is close behind, with a 5-2 dual record, competing mainly at the No. 1 spot. In doubles, Lavatai and Pisareva are 5-2 together, playing primarily at No. 2, while Lucy Octave and Annaliese County are 6-2, splitting time between Nos. 2 and 3 doubles. 

GEARING UP FOR THE GAELS
Although Saint Mary's carries a 1-7 record into Friday's match against San Jose State, the Gaels have competed against some of the top teams in the nation, including Oregon, SMU, UCLA, and USC, and fell in close matches to UCSB (4-3) and Long Beach State (4-2). The Gaels are led by sophomore Mariia Kozyreva, who is currently ranked No. 107 in the latest ITA polls. Kozyreva is 3-2 at the top singles position, and was about to record a two-set victory over USC's Salma Ewing, who has been consistently ranked in the top-50. The Gaels have struggled in doubles play this year, having won just four matches out of eighteen in the dual season, with each win being earned by a different pairing.

ABOUT UC DAVIS
Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education, offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.

AGGIE EVO
Established during the 2017-18 academic year, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.