Women's Tennis Moves Into NCAA Quarterfinals

ORLANDO, Fla. – Nearly two years to the day since its last match at the USTA National Campus, the UCLA women's tennis team shut out Georgia Tech to earn a spot in the NCAA Championships quarterfinal round.

Elysia Bolton clinched the victory for the fourth-seeded Bruins (22-4), who did not drop a set in any of their completed contests. Abbey Forbes and Annette Goulak also prevailed on the singles courts, capitalizing on an early advantage seized in doubles play. The 13th-seeded Yellow Jackets (20-11), who posted a runner-up finish at the ACC Championships, had their season come to an end.

Next up for UCLA is a Wednesday matchup with No. 5 seed Pepperdine. The start time has not been announced. The teams have met three times previously this season, with the Bruins holding a 2-1 edge.

Goulak and Vivian Wolff set the tone on the second doubles court. The matchup with No. 16 Gia Cohen and Ava Hrastar did not see a hold of serve until 3-1, when the Bruins changed the trajectory of the match. Goulak and Wolff would not drop another game, improving to 18-2 and scoring their first win over a ranked opponent on the season. Then, with Forbes and Jada Hart nearing a victory of their own over No. 3 Victoria Flores and Kenya Jones on the top court, Bolton and Abi Altick did the honor of clinching the first point. Altick and Bolton secured the final three games to finish off a 6-3 win over Monika Dedaj and Carol Lee on Court 3. Altick and Bolton are now 4-0 with three clinching points.

Four first sets would go the way of UCLA in singles play. No. 50 Hart bounced back from a lost first set, but her match with No. 13 Flores on Court 2 was left unfinished.

Goulak registered her third straight-set win of the tournament, doubling the Bruins' lead. With her 6-0, 6-1 performance against Mahak Jain on Court 6, Goulak has still yet to surrender more than two games in an NCAA set this season. She is 17-3 on the year.

The only UCLA player with more singles wins on the campaign than Goulak is No. 7 Forbes, who improved to 20-2 with a 6-3, 6-1 triumph over No. 5 Kenya Jones on the top court. The win also brought Forbes' records against nationally-ranked opponents to 14-2 and top-five foes to 3-0.

Bolton received a challenge from Cohen on Court 3, but it was not enough. Bolton, who moved to 10-3, closed out the 6-4, 6-4 decision with an ace, sealing UCLA's 26th trip to the quarterfinal round and third in a row.

Tennis Match Results
Georgia Tech vs UCLA
5/16/2021 at USTA National Campus
(Orlando, FL)

#4 UCLA 4, #11 Georgia Tech 0

Singles competition
1. #7 Abbey Forbes (UCLA) def. #5 Kenya Jones (GT) 6-3, 6-1
2. #50 Jada Hart (UCLA) vs. #13 Victoria Flores (GT) 3-6, 6-2, 2-1, unfinished
3. Elysia Bolton (UCLA) def. Gia Cohen (GT) 6-4, 6-4
4. Vivian Wolff (UCLA) vs. #100 Ava Hrastar (GT) 7-6 (8-6), 3-2, unfinished
5. Vanessa Ong (UCLA) vs. Carol Lee (GT) 2-6, 3-4, unfinished
6. Annette Goulak (UCLA) def. Mahak Jain (GT) 6-0, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Abbey Forbes/Jada Hart (UCLA) vs. #3 Victoria Flores/Kenya Jones (GT) 5-3, unfinished
2. Annette Goulak/Vivian Wolff (UCLA) def. #16 Gia Cohen/Ava Hrastar (GT) 6-1
3. Abi Altick/Elysia Bolton (UCLA) def. Monika Dedaj/Carol Lee (GT) 6-3

Match Notes:
Georgia Tech 20-11; National ranking #11
UCLA 22-4; National ranking #4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (6,1,3)
NCAA Championships - Round of 16