EVANSTON, Ill. — Despite falling behind 3-1 to the #13 Tennessee Lady Vols, the #15 Pepperdine women's tennis team made a push to tie the score at 3-3 before eventually falling 4-3 in the consolation round of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Team Indoor Championships on Saturday morning.

Although the Waves (1-5) lost the doubles point, a quick, straight-set win from #80 Vivian Yang helped Pepperdine stay in the fight. With the score stuck at 3-1 for over an hour, Anastasiia Grechkina and Alexia Harmon battled back with three-set comeback victories to keep hope alive. Unfortunately for Pepperdine, the Lady Vols (5-1) clinched the match two minutes after Harmon's win.

While the beginning of singles play belonged to Tennessee, Yang provided the lone exception on court three.

The sophomore handily won her match against Maeve Thornton. Yang broke Thornton on a double fault in the second game and never reached a deciding point in the first set. In the seventh game, Yang held for a 5-2 lead, then won three consecutive points to break Thornton and win the first set 6-2.

Yang's second set followed a similar script. She broke Thornton immediately in the first game and went up 3-0 once again. From there, her lead was never challenged; Yang held on deuce point in the seventh game, then broke Thornton for the first set in the next game.

However, straight-set wins from Tennessee put the Lady Vols up 3-1. 

For the next hour, the score stayed at 3-1. But instead of folding, the Waves made a push. Over the span of 20 minutes, Harmon rebounded in her second set against #77 Vanesa Suarez, using her serve to rally for a 6-2 second-set victory. 

Meanwhile, on court two, Grechkina dug herself out of a 5-2 second-set deficit and saved two match points against #32 Catherine Aulia. After Aulia held serve on deuce point for a 5-2 lead, Grechkina quickly held serve, then broke Aulia in the ninth game to make the score 5-4. Aulia forced another match point in the tenth game, but Grechkina held serve to stay alive and tie the score at five games apiece. The Russian freshman then broke Aulia in the eleventh game and held serve for the 7-5 comeback win.

But Grechkina wasn't out of the woods yet. In the third set, Grechkina and Aulia traded breaks midway through the frame to keep the match on serve, then the Pepperdine freshman broke Aulia one final time for a 5-4 lead. Grechkina's perseverance eventually paid off; she held serve in the tenth game to complete her 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 win over Aulia — her second ranked win of the spring.

Over on court five, Harmon tied the score with a 6-4 third-set win of her own. The freshman and #77 Suarez traded breaks early in the set, but Harmon broke Suarez in the ninth game and served out the match for her 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 win that momentarily tied the score 3-3.

Yet the tie was short-lived. Conley Raidt clinched the match for Tennessee with a three-set win on court six two minutes after Harmon got off the court.

The Waves play their final match of the tournament tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. PT. As of press time, Pepperdine's final opponent has not been determined.

RESULTS

Singles
1. #7 Elza Tomase (TENN) def. #16 Savannah Broadus (PEPP) 6-0, 6-1
2. Anastasiia Grechkina (PEPP) def. #32 Catherine Aulia (TENN), 2-6, 7-5, 6-4
3. #80 Vivian Yang (PEPP) def. Maeve Thornton (TENN), 6-2, 6-2
4. #104 Leyla Britez Risso (TENN) def. Liam Oved (PEPP) 7-5, 6-0
5. Alexia Harmon (PEPP) def. #77 Vanesa Suarez (TENN) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
6. Conley Raidt (TENN) def. #108 Duru Soke (PEPP) 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3

Order of finish: 1,3,4,2,5,6*

Doubles
1. #7 Savannah Broadus/Vivian Yang (PEPP) vs. #75 Elza Tomase/Elim Yan (TENN), 4-5 unfinished
2. Catherine Aulia/Leyla Britez Russo (TENN) def. Taylor Goetz/Duru Soke (PEPP) 6-2
3. #54 Vanesa Suarez/Maeve Thornton (TENN) def. Anastasiia Grechkina/Alexia Harmon (PEPP), 6-4

Order of finish: 2, 3*