SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- With the match on the line, junior Bay Daniels edged Ina Dan in a 3-set thriller, 6-2, 6-7, 7-6, lifting Azusa Pacific’s women’s tennis team to a 5-4 road victory over UC San Diego in the season opener for both teams Saturday afternoon.
After gaining a valuable point in the doubles matches thanks to Daniels and senior Peggy Bell’s 8-0 win at No. 2 doubles over the UC San Diego’s Justine Ang Fonte and Pooja Desai, each of Azusa Pacific’s top 4 singles players won to give the Cougars the victory.
Bell defeated Desai for the second time in the day at No. 4 singles, and senior Jennifer Dao was victorious at No. 1 singles, with both winning in straight sets. Junior Kim Tran needed 3 sets to put away Fonte at No. 3 singles.
With the win, Azusa Pacific improves to 1-0 on the season, while the Tritons drop to 0-1. The Cougars spend the first 3 weeks of the season on the road with 3 more matches scheduled before the home opener against Westmont in a GSAC match on Sat., Feb. 24 at Azusa Pacific’s home courts located at nearby Citrus College in Glendora. Up next is NCAA Div. III Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in a 2:30 p.m. match Feb. 9 at Claremont.
Singles:
#1 – Jennifer Dao (APU) def. Marsha Malinow (UCSD), 6-3, 6-2
#2 – Bay Daniels (APU) def. Ina Dan (UCSD), 6-2, 6-7, 7-6
#3 – Kim Tran (APU) def. Justine Ang Fonte (UCSD), 7-6, 4-6, 6-3
#4 – Peggy Bell (APU) def. Pooja Desai (UCSD), 6-1, 6-2
#5 – Tessa Tran (UCSD) def. Katy Jelsma (APU), 6-4, 7-5
#6 – Allison Legakis (UCSD) def. Jessalyn Lau (APU), 6-3, 6-3
Doubles:
#1 – Malinow/Dan (UCSD) def. Tran/Dao (APU), 8-3
#2 – Daniels/Bell (APU) def. Fonte/Desai (UCSD), 8-0
#3 – Legakis/Milvidskaia (UCSD) def. Jelsma/Cloninger (APU), 8-4
