Follow UC Davis: Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Facebook

 
IRVINE, Calif. – Sara Tsukamoto and Lauren Ko opened Thursday's quarterfinal match versus Hawai'i at the Big West Women's Tennis Championship on a positive note for the Aggies by defeating Petra Melounova and Bojana Markovic, 6-2. After the Rainbow Wahine evened the round by taking the next doubles matchup, UC Davis clinched the first team point of the day when Shirley Hall and Michelle Zell won a 7-5 tiebreaker over Nikola Dolakova and Satsuki Takamura.
 
When singles action commenced, UH won four straight to turn that 1-0 deficit into a 4-1 result over UC Davis, a team that entered the league's postseason tournament on a four-match win streak.
 
Thursday's matchup was a closer battle than indicated by the final score: Following her 6-4 first set victory versus Alexis Merrill, Kristina Evloeva led 5-4 in the second set when play was halted. Tsukamoto and Melounova split their first two sets; the senior Aggie won the first frame, 6-3, but dropped the following one by a 6-4 score and trailed 5-4 when the 'Bows earned their fourth team point.
 
UC Davis ends the 2021 season with an 8-8 record, Hawai'i will continue tournament play at Orange Great Park in Irvine, California, at 7-7. These teams split this year's head-to-head matchups as the Aggies defeated the Rainbow Wahine, 4-2, in a dual that took place at the Marya Welch Tennis Center on April 11.

 
 
2021 Big West Women's Tennis Championship
Quarterfinal Round
April 29, 2021
Irvine, Calif. (Orange County Great Park)
 
Doubles
1. Tsukamoto, Sara/Ko, Lauren (UCD) def. Petra Melounova/Bojana Markovic (UH) 6-2

2. Hall, Shirley/Zell, Michelle (UCD) def. Nikola Dolakova/Satsuki Takamura (UH) 7-6 (7-5)
3. Alexis Merrill/Lea Romain (UH) def. Evloeva, Kristina/Gurevich, Yana (UCD) 6-4

Singles
1. Tsukamoto, Sara (UCD) vs. Petra Melounova (UH) 6-3, 4-6, 4-5, unfinished
2. Nikola Dolakova (UH) def. Gurevich, Yana (UCD) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)

3. Satsuki Takamura (UH) def. Hall, Shirley (UCD) 6-4, 6-3
4. Bojana Markovic (UH) def. Zell, Michelle (UCD) 6-0, 6-1
5. Lea Romain (UH) def. Maunupau, Olive (UCD) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)
6. Evloeva, Kristina (UCD) vs. Alexis Merrill (UH) 6-4, 5-4, unfinished
 
Match Notes
Hawai'i 7-7

UC Davis 8-8

Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (4,3,5,2)
 
 
 
 
ABOUT UC DAVIS
Centrally located between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, over 700 student-athletes across 25 teams enjoy an unrivaled undergraduate experience at the fifth-ranked public school in the country. 
 
Ranked annually in the nation's top 10 in diversity and students' social mobility, UC Davis and its innovative Aggie EVO System helps student-athletes develop passions, connect with a comprehensive network of alums and industry leaders, gain real-world experience and thrive as a young professional following a successful launch to full-time employment or graduate school.