LOS ANGELES — Outlasting their PCH Cup rivals in a three-hour, 40-minute match, the No. 21 Pepperdine women's tennis team beat LMU 4-2 under the lights on Sunday night.
The Waves (8-8, 2-0 WCC) rebounded after losing a close doubles point to the upset-minded Lions (4-10, 2-2 WCC), who took an early advantage after winning a 7-6 (3) match on court three. From there, Alexia Harmon and Duru Söke won their matches in straight sets — surrendering just three games combined — then sophomore Vivian Yang gave the Waves a lead with her straight-set win on court one. This set the table for Sebastianna Scilipoti, who clinched the match with a three-set win over Kim-Michaela Zahraj.
After winning the doubles point, LMU wasn't satisfied. The Lions fought through their first sets with two exceptions, thanks to Harmon and Söke.
Harmon got off the court first, beating Fiona Arrese 6-2, 6-0 at the third position to win her team-leading tenth dual match. Söke soon followed with a dominant 6-1, 6-0 win over Martina Bovio on court five, which put the Waves up 2-1. However, the Lions countered with a straight-set win on court two, which made it clear the Lions weren't going quietly.
As the sun set and the match crept up to the three-hour mark, Yang wrapped up her 6-2, 7-5 win over fifth-year senior Stefania Rogozinska-Dzik at the first position. Yang's first-ever win playing atop Pepperdine's lineup came at an opportune time, as LMU took big third-set leads on courts four and six.
Despite falling behind by a break early in her third set, Scilipoti hung with Kim-Michaela Zahraj. Trailing 5-3, Scilipoti saved two match points to hold at deuce and extend the match. At the same time, LMU's Isabella Tcherkes-Zade took a double-break lead in the third set of her match on court six. Pepperdine was walking a tightrope, needing to rally in just one of the two remaining matches to avoid a colossal upset.
Scilipoti obliged. The freshman broke Zahraj, saving another match point in the process, and consolidated the break to tie the score at five games apiece. She broke Zahraj one more time for a 6-5 lead, then served out her 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-5 victory to cap off the near-four-hour rivalry battle.
With the win, the Waves extend their WCC win streak to 82 consecutive matches and 26 over LMU.
Pepperdine heads to Seattle to take on No. 20 Washington on Friday at noon. All schedule updates can be found on the women's tennis team's schedule page at pepperdinewaves.com.
RESULTS
Singles
1. Vivian Yang (PEPP) def. Stefania Rogozinska-Dzik (LMU) 6-2, 7-5
2. Anastasia Bozova (LMU) def. #68 Anastasiia Grechkina (PEPP) 6-2, 6-3
3. Alexia Harmon (PEPP) def. Fiona Arrese (LMU) 6-2, 6-0
4. Sebastianna Scilipoti (PEPP) def. Kim-Michaela Zahraj (LMU) 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-5
5. Duru Söke (PEPP) def. Martina Bovio (LMU) 6-1, 6-0
6. Isabella Tcherkes-Zade (LMU) vs. Liam Oved (PEPP) 4-6, 6-2, 5-4 unfinished
Order of finish: 3,5,2,1,4*
Doubles
1. #55 Stefania Rogozinska-Dzik/Anastasia Bozova (LMU) def. #57 Anastasiia Grechkina/Alexia Harmon (PEPP) 6-2
2. Duru Söke/Sebastianna Scilipoti (PEPP) def. Isabella Tcherkes-Zade/Kim-Michaela Zahraj (LMU) 6-4
3. Fiona Arrese/Martina Bovio (LMU) def. Liam Oved/Vivian Yang (PEPP) 7-6 (3)
Order of finish: 1,2,3*
