PULLMAN, Wash. – Junior Elizaveta Luzina upset the nation's 25th ranked player but it was No. 29 Pepperdine capturing the team win as it defeated No. 48 Washington State 4-1 Thursday afternoon at the WSU Outdoor Tennis Courts. Following the loss the Cougars fell to 15-8 while Pepperdine improved to 11-4.
Luzina, who in her two previous matches against top 30 players had her contest halted with the team outcome decided, took full advantage Thursday. Luzina, ranked No. 106, captured a close opening set against No. 25 Lorraine Guillermo. Guillermo raced back, winning the second set 6-0, but the momentum ended there as Luzina grabbed an early break in the third and never let up, winning 6-4, 0-6, 6-1 for the Cougars' lone point.
Pepperdine captured the opening doubles point by winning two of the three doubles matches. The Waves won at No. 3 as Matea Cutura and Yuki Chiang defeated Charlotte Koning and Dajana Ognjenovic 8-2. WSU responded at No. 2 when Maria Biryukova and Olga Musilovich posted an 8-6 win over Ale Granillo and Michaela Capannolo, leaving it to No. 1 to determine the point. There, The Pepperdine duo of Guillermo and Apichaya Runglerdkriangkrai rode an early break of serve to the 8-5 victory over Luzina and Lize Leenknecht.
At No. 5 singles Chiang rolled through Ognjenovic 6-0, 6-0, extending Pepperdine's lead to 2-0. Runglerdkriangkrai made it 3-0 as she defeated Koning 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 at No. 6 before Granillo clinched the match with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Musilovich at No. 4. The two matches remaining on court were stopped with the team outcome decided. At No. 2, Biryukova dropped a first set tiebreaker to Cutura but was leading 5-2 in the second. At No. 3, Leenknecht was down a break in the third set, trailing 6-3, 4-6, 2-4.
The Cougars return to Pac-12 action Friday when they host No. 40 Washington at the Simmelink Tennis Courts at Hollingbery Fieldhouse. Match time is set for 11 a.m.
WASHINGTON STATE TENNIS
No. 29 Pepperdine 4 def. No. 48 Washington State 1
April 3, 2014
WSU Outdoor Tennis Courts
Pullman, Wash.
DOUBLES
No. 1 Lorraine Guillermo/Apichaya Runglerdkriangkrai (Pep.) def. Elizaveta Luzina/Lize Leenknecht (WSU) 8-5
No. 2 Maria Biryukova/Olga Musilovich (WSU) def. Ale Granillo/Michaela Capannolo (Pep.) 8-6
No. 3 Matea Cutura/Yuki Chiang (Pep.) def. Charlotte Koning/Dajana Ognjenovic (WSU) 8-2
Order of Finish: 3,2,1
SINGLES
No. 1 No. 106 Elizaveta Luzina (WSU) def. No. 25 Lorraine Guillermo (Pep.) 6-4, 0-6, 6-1
No. 2 Maria Biryukova (WSU) vs. Matea Cutura (Pep.) 6-7 (5-7), 5-2 DNF
No. 3 Lize Leenknecht (WSU) vs. Ale Granillo (Pep.) 6-3, 4-6, 2-4 DNF
No. 4 Michaela Capannolo (Pep.) def. Olga Musilovich (WSU) 7-5, 6-1
No. 5 Yuki Chiang (Pep.) def. Dajana Ognjenovic (WSU) 6-0, 6-0
No. 6 Apichaya Runglerdkriangkrai (Pep.) def. Charlotte Koning (WSU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-1
Order of Finish: 5,6,4,1
