Bettering their record to 8-7 overall and 5-2 in-conference, No. 37 Bears defeated No. 43 Oregon on Sunday. Retaliating after losing the doubles point, Cal won all six of its singles matches, including five straight-set victories. After their exciting weekend in Eugene, the Bears have a packed schedule ahead of them, including three matches next week, the first of which is set to happen on Tuesday against Pacific.
Ranked No. 4 nationally going into Sunday’s match, sophomore duo Jessica Alsola and Katja Wiersholm were expected to continue their near-perfect season against the Duck’s first doubles line of Uxia Martinez Moral and Sophie Luescher. However, they were ultimately defeated 6-2 by their Oregon opponents. Shortly after, seniors Haley Giavara and Valentina Ivanov were bested by Joyee Chan and Ares Texido Garcia 6-0. The first two doubles losses stranded senior Erin Richardson and freshman Berta Passola Folch in the midst of their match, which they were trailing 5-4.
However, despite having disappointing results in doubles, the Bears’ confidence was not deterred.
“Yeah, losing doubles kind of makes you more hungry going into singles,” Wiersholm said. “You just want to redeem yourself and start off super strong, and sometimes it even helps me get a fighting spirit going into my singles match.”
The tenacity of the blue and gold going into singles was evident with the success showcased in the box score. Folch, Cal’s only freshman, won her match in perfect sets against Oregon’s Madisen Olsen. Then, Alsola defeated her opponent 6-1, 6-1, allowing her to continue her 15 match singles win streak. Giavara followed shortly thereafter, besting Teixido Garcia, who she lost to in doubles, 6-1, 6-4. Wiersholm then secured her first clinching win of the season, beating Oregon’s Myah Petchey 6-2, 6-3.
“I was just super happy and super proud of our team in general,” Wiersholm said, reflecting on her important match victory. “Coming back after losing the doubles point, all of us getting all the singles done … I was happy to be a part of that and be the winning match.”
Junior Hannah Viller Moeller bested Karin Young, posting a result of 6-2, 6-2. Ivanov also finished out her match against Martinez Moral, winning in a tough, three set match 4-6, 6-3, 10-7.
“Today was a really good team victory. (Wiersholm) clinched the match, but (Viller Moeller) was right there, it could have gone either way,” said head coach Amanda Augustus, emphasizing the fantastic performance of her team this weekend. “(Ivanov) closing her match out after not winning the first set was also good, so I would like to acknowledge that everyone on the team really stepped up to play.”
However, the days of excitement following the Bears’ performance in Eugene are numbered, with the blue and gold’s next match occurring against Pacific on Tuesday. Traveling to Stockton to face the Tigers, the Bears are up against a great team led by No. 32-ranked doubles duo Klara Kosan and Karina Chao.
In addition, Cal is scheduled to play two conference matches next week, against Washington State on April 14 and Washington on April 15.
“We got three matches coming up next week so there’s not a lot of time to train, but I think we can tighten up a couple things in our doubles and hopefully get some doubles points this week,” Augustus said of the busy week ahead. “It’s a pretty quick turnaround, so we’re just trying to rest up and be ready to go.”
