CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (May 23, 2022) – Washington State University’s Michaela Bayerlova defeated Miami’s Eden Richardson in the opening round of the 2022 NCAA Women’s Singles Championship Monday afternoon at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex on the University of Illinois campus.
With the victory, Bayerlova, matched her previous two postseason trips by reaching the NCAA Singles Championship Second Round, the only Cougar in program history to win a round at the NCAA Championship.
Entering the tournament ranked No. 36 nationally, Bayerlova had little trouble with Richardson, who began the match one spot below Bayerlova at No. 37 in the rankings. The Cougar fifth-year senior never trailed in the match, capturing a break of serve to open the match. Richardson broke back to even the set at 2-2 but it was all Bayerlova after that, winning the next four games to take the set, 6-2.
In the second set, Bayerlova fought back from 15-40 down in the first game to earn the break and never looked back. She added two more service breaks to complete the dominating first-round win in a little more than an hour.
The win improved Bayerlova’s record this season to 18-2, 7-1 against nationally-ranked opponents, and was also her 91st career victory, seventh all-time. She will face the winner of Duke’s Chloe Beck and California’s Jessica Alsola in a second-round match Tuesday.
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