DURHAM, N.C. – The UCLA women’s tennis team fought back from an early deficit to defeat Texas Tech 4-1 and advance to Saturday’s NCAA Championships second round at Ambler Tennis Stadium.
Kimmi Hance, Fangran Tian, Elise Wagle and clincher Sasha Vagramov were victorious on the singles courts for UCLA (14-7), which bounced back after losing the doubles point. The Bruins face the winner of the first-round match between No. 6-seed Duke and William & Mary on Saturday at 2 p.m. PT. The Lady Raiders ended their season with a 14-11 overall record.
For the ninth time in their 10 matches as a partnership, Tian and Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer prevailed in doubles play. The pair’s 6-1 showing against Ykaterina Dmitrichenko and Camryn Stepp on Court 3 gave UCLA an early advantage. Texas Tech responded on Court 2, where Olivia Peet and Cristina Tiglea outlasted Vagramov and Ava Catanzarite 6-4. As that match finished, the one on the top court entered a tiebreaker. A back-and-forth affair ultimately went the way of the 38th-ranked tandem of Lady Raiders Metka Komac and Avelina Sayfetdinova, which defeated No. 7 Hance and Wagle 7-6(7).
The Bruins took five singles first sets and quickly started piling up wins. First to finish was No. 14 Fangran Tian on Court 1, where the freshman extended her singles winning streak to 16 with a 6-1, 6-3 result opposite Olivia Peet.
Hance exacted a form of revenge for her doubles loss on Court 2, where she charged past Sayfetdinova 7-5, 6-0. Hance has won four consecutive singles decisions.
Wagle also convincingly bounced back after doubles play, overpowering Tiglea for a 6-1, 6-4 victory on…
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