MALIBU, Calif. – The 47th-ranked UC Santa Barbara women's tennis team gave No. 23 UCLA all it could handle in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday before ultimately falling 4-0 at the Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center on the Pepperdine Campus.
After watching the Bruins win the doubles point, the Gauchos won the first set on four of the singles courts. No.3 Jaimee Gilbertson, No. 4 Stefani Stojic, No. 5 Amanda Atanasson and No. 6 Melissa Baker each went up 1-0 against their opponent.
At No. 1, Palina Dubavets was swept by UCLA's Ena Shibahara, 6-3, 6-4. Shibahara is No. 5 in the latest ITA rankings. On the No. 2 court, Natalie Da Silveira fell 7-6 in a heartbreaking first set and then 6-2 in the second set.
The match was essentially decided at No. 4, where Stojic fell to Alaina Miller, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. When things were decided, Gilbertson led Jada Hart 4-6, 6-3, 0-2 and Baker was tied with Kristin Wiley, 1-6, 6-4, 2-2. Atanasson trailed UCLA's Gabby Andrews, 4-6, 6-2, 3-1.
The loss ends UCSB's 10-match winning streak. The Gauchos end the season with a 17-10-1 record.
NCAA Tournament – First Round
No. 23 UCLA def. No. 47 UC Santa Barbara – 4-0
Singles
No. 1: No. 5 Ena Shibahara (UCLA) def. Palina Dubavets (UCSB) – 6-3, 6-4
No. 2: Terri Fleming (UCLA) def. Natalie Da Silveira (UCSB) – 7-6 (6), 6-2
No. 3: Jada Hart (UCLA) vs. Jamiee Gilbertson (UCSB) – 4-6, 6-3, 0-2, unfinished
No. 4: Alaina Miller (UCSB) def. Stefani Stojic (UCSB) – 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 5: Gabby Andrews (UCLA) vs. Amanda Atanasson (UCSB) – 4-6, 6-2, 3-1, unfinished
No. 6: Kristin Wiley (UCLA) vs. Melissa Baker (UCSB) – 1-6, 6-4, 2-2, unfinished
Order of finish: 1, 4, 2*
Doubles
No. 1: No. 32 Jada Hart/Terri Fleming (UCLA) vs. No. 66 Palina Dubavets/Stefani Stojic (UCSB) – 4-4, unfinished
No. 2: No. 58 Gabby Andrews/Alaina Miller (UCLA) def. Amanda Atanasson/Melissa Baker (UCSB) – 6-2
No. 3: Ena Shibahara/Kristin Wiley (UCLA) def. Stephani Yamada/Natalie Da Silveira (UCSB) – 6-1
Order of finish: 3, 2*
