MALIBU, Calif. — Playing in its first West Coast Conference match of the season, the #7 Pepperdine women's tennis team rolled to a 7-0 sweep over PCH Cup rival LMU at Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center on Friday.
With the win, the Waves (7-2, 1-0 WCC) earned their fourth-consecutive sweep over the crosstown rival Lions (2-5, 1-1 WCC) and extended their win streak to five. Pepperdine has won the last 24 matches against LMU dating back to 2004.
Pepperdine struck first in doubles play, as Lisa Zaar and Jasmine Conway got on the board with a 6-1 win at the third position, in which the Waves broke the Lions in the fourth game en route to their second-consecutive doubles win. At the first position, the nation's third-ranked doubles team of Savannah Broadus and Janice Tjen broke LMU in the sixth game for a 4-2 lead, then broke the Lions in the final game to win 6-2. The duo now has a 7-0 record in match play and is on a 10-match win streak this spring.
Singles was another Pepperdine rout. Five of the six Waves won their first sets, while all but two were straight-set Pepperdine victories. The top half of Pepperdine's roster maintained its hot streak, while #120 Anna Campana clinched the match at the fourth position with her 6-4, 6-0 win.
Keeping up her strong singles play as of late, #102 Tjen sped through her first set and won 6-1 before blanking Romane Loungeville 6-0 in the second set for her sixth-consecutive singles win. Her doubles partner #8 Broadus somehow fared better, beating Isabel Tcherkes-Zade 6-0, 6-0 to put Pepperdine up 3-0. Moments later, #120 Campana put the match to bed with a 6-4, 6-0 win at the fourth position, extending her win streak to three.
The rest of the matches were played out, yet the results were the same. At the fifth position, Conway beat Fiona Arrese in straight sets 6-2, 6-4 for her first WCC win.
Meanwhile, on court one, #13 Zaar held off an upset-minded Carlota Molina, the latter of whom rallied back from several match points in the second set to force a third-set tiebreaker. Tied 5-5 in the third set, Zaar won back-to-back points to take a 7-5 lead at the changeover, but Molina pulled within one on the next point. Yet Molina wouldn't get closer. Zaar won the next two points to take a 9-6 lead, then capped off the 6-1, 5-7 (10-7) win two points later when Molina returned a Zaar serve wide.
In the final singles match, Vivian Yang came back after LMU's Anastasia Bozova won the first set 7-5, then held on deuce point in the seventh game to win the second set 6-2. Yang and Bozova were tied 5-5 in the tiebreak, then Yang rattled off five straight points to cap off her 5-7, 6-2 (10-5) win.
RESULTS
Singles
1. #13 Lisa Zaar (PEPP) def. Carlota Molina (LMU) 6-1, 5-7 (10-7)
2. #8 Savannah Broadus (PEPP) def. Isabel Tcherkes-Zade (LMU) 6-0, 6-0
3. #102 Janice Tjen (PEPP) def. Romane Loungeville (LMU) 6-1, 6-0
4. #120 Anna Campana (PEPP) def. Fiona Arrese (LMU) 6-4, 6-0
5. Jasmine Conway (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj (LMU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Vivian Yang (PEPP) def. Anastasia Bozova (LMU) 5-7, 6-2 (10-5)
Order of finish: 3,2,4*,5,1,6
Doubles
1. #3 Savannah Broadus/Janice Tjen (PEPP) def. Carlota Molina/Isabel Tcherkes-Zade (LMU) 6-2
2. Nikki Redelijk/Vivian Yang (PEPP) vs. Stef Rogozinska-Dzik/Fiona Arrese (LMU) 3-4, unfinished
3. Lisa Zaar/Jasmine Conway (PEPP) def. Anna Paradisi/Romane Loungeville (LMU) 6-1
Order of finish: 3,1
UP NEXT: Pepperdine takes a two-match road trip to #9 Ohio State and #3 Michigan starting next Friday, March 8.
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