Skip to main content

No. 56 Spaka and Turkovic Upset No. 23 Catanzarite and Forbes in 4-1 Setback at No. 14 UCLA

Mar 12, 2022

LOS ANGELES – Patricija Spaka and Domenika Turkovic certainly looked like one of the nation's top doubles pairs on Saturday afternoon, when they handily took care of the No. 23 duo in UCLA's Ava Catanzarite and Abigail Forbes, 6-1.

Despite the statement win from the Sun Devils' top doubles team and Spaka's team-best 11th singles win, the Sun Devils fell in a 4-1 setback to No. 14 UCLA on Saturday afternoon at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.

Spaka handed UCLA's Ava Catanzarite a 6-4, 6-2 loss, but the Sun Devils (8-5, 1-3) couldn't orchestrate any kind of a comeback after that. Spaka's win cut the deficit to 3-1, and the Bruins sealed the match moments later with No. 42 Abigail Forbes' win over Giulia Morlet on Court 1, 6-3, 6-2.

For the second consecutive day, the Sun Devils were tasked with digging out of an early hole after they lost the doubles point. After the triumph on Court 1 by Spaka and Turkovic, the Sun Devils fumbled the remaining two matches to give the Bruins an early 1-0 edge.

Gallagher and Morlet lost, 6-4, to Elysia Bolton and Vanessa Ong after jumping out to a 4-1 lead. Natasha Hill and Cali Jankowski went down, 6-2, to Kimmie Hance and Sasha Vagramov.

In singles play, three of the top four Sun Devils were battling against nationally-ranked opponents. Morlet, a day after squaring off against USC's No. 6 Eryn Cayetano, drew No. 42 Abigail Forbes, Turkovic sparred with No. 69 Elysia Bolton and Jankowski met No. 115 Kimmie Hance.

The Bruins were relentless, stacking two quick singles wins to an early 3-0 advantage with wins on Courts 6 & 2. 

Jankowski forced a third set after dropping the first, and was gearing up for a terrific finish before the Bruins clinched the decisive fourth point with Forbes' win on Court 1.

SINGLES
1. #42 Abbey Forbes (UCLA) def. Giulia Morlet (ASU) 6-3, 6-2 
2. #69 Elysia Bolton (UCLA) def. Domenika Turkovic (ASU) 6-1, 6-1 
3. Sasha Vagramov (UCLA) vs. Sedona Gallagher (ASU) 6-3, 4-4, unfinished
4. #115 Kimmi Hance (UCLA) vs. Cali Jankowski (ASU) 6-3, 2-6, 3-2, unfinished
5. Patricija Spaka (ASU) def. Ava Catanzarite (UCLA) 6-4, 6-2 
6. Vanessa Ong (UCLA) def. Natasha Hill (ASU) 6-1, 6-0 

DOUBLES
1. #56 Patricija Spaka/Domenika Turkovic (ASU) def. #23 Ava Catanzarite/Abbey Forbes (UCLA) 6-1
2. Elysia Bolton/Vanessa Ong (UCLA) def. Sedona Gallagher/Giulia Morlet (ASU) 6-4
3. Kimmi Hance/Sasha Vagramov (UCLA) def. Natasha Hill/Cali Jankowski (ASU) 6-2

UP NEXT
Next up for the Sun Devils is a trip to Eugene to square off with Oregon (8-4) on Sunday, March 20, at 12 p.m. MST. Fans can tune into the action via live stream or follow along with live stats, both of which will be shared with fans prior to play on the team's Twitter account, @sundevilwtennis.