SALT LAKE CITY – University of Utah women's tennis defeated Washington State, 4-3, and swept in-state opponent Weber State, 7-0 in a full day of matches at the Eccles Tennis Center.
 
The Utes kicked off the day with a Pac-12 Conference match against Washington State. In doubles competition, Brianna Turley and Margo Pletcher got out to an early 3-0 lead before Victoria Matejevic and Antea Miksovska gained momentum and clinched the win, 6-4. Taylor Calton and Whitney Turley pulled out a 6-3 win over Guzal Yusupova and Ege Tomey in a close match. The doubles point was decided by a Washington State win in the No. 2 spot, 6-4.  
 
Pletcher started the Utes off strong in singles competition with a hard-fought win over Barbora Michalkova, 6-1, 6-1 to tie the dual-match score at 1-1. A 6-2, 6-4 loss at the No. 2 spot gave the Cougars the edge, 2-1. Jena Cheng fell to Victoria Matejevic, 6-4, 6-3, and Whitney Turley defeated Ege Tomey, 6-1, 6-2, to bring the score to 3-2 in favor of the Cougars. A win from Alexia Petrovic over Antea Miksovska in the No. 3 spot, 6-2, 6-4, tied the dual-match score at 3-3. A crucial three-set win by Taylor Calton in the No. 5 spot clinched the victory for the Utes.
 
Against the Weber State Wildcats, the Utes won the doubles point with two solid victories in the No. 1 and No. 3 spots. Margo Pletcher and Brianna Turley defeated Tereza Pilzova and Caitlin Herb while Luisa Gerstner Da Rosa and Whitney Turley defeated Dominique Beauvis and Devi Hasan, both by a score of 6-2.
 
The Utes finished the dual-match win with six solid victories in singles competition. Gerstner Da Rosa, Pletcher, and Turley recorded wins in the No. 5, No. 1, and No. 4 spots to secure the victory. Victoria Robertson, along with Petrovic and Cheng, also recorded singles wins on the day.
 
"While I do not feel like we played great, it was good we hung in there for a valuable Pac-12 win. There are no freebies in this league and I felt as though we played a solid match in the nightcap," head coach Mat Iandolo said.
 
The Utes will be back at the Eccles Tennis Center for a weekend of conference matches. They face the No. 5 Stanford Cardinal on Mar. 31 at 1:30 p.m. followed by the No. 12 California Golden Bears on Apr. 2 at 11 a.m.


Washington State
Doubles Competition (Order of finish: 3, 1, 2)
Victoria Matejevic/Antea Miksovska def. Pletcher/B. Turley, 6-4
Barbora Michalkova/Melisa Ates def. Gerstner Da Rosa/Petrovic, 6-4
Calton/ W. Turley def. Guzal Yusupova/Ege Tomey, 6-3
 
Singles competition (Order of finish: 1, 2, 4, 6, 3, 5)
Pletcher def. Barbora Michalkova, 6-1, 6-1
Guzal Yusupova def. B. Turley, 6-2, 6-4
Petrovic def. Antea Miksovska, 6-2, 6-4
Victoria Matejevic def. Cheng, 6-4, 6-3
Calton def. Melisa Ates, 6-1, 3-6, 7-5
W. Turley def. Ege Tomey, 6-1, 6-2


Weber State
Doubles competition (Order of finish: 1, 3)
Pletcher/B. Turley def. Tereza Pilzova/Caitlin Herb, 6-2
Cheng/Calton vs. Sara Parker/Morgan Dickason, 4-3 (DNF)
Gerstner Da Rosa/W. Turley def. Dominique Beauvis/Devi Hasan, 6-2
 
Singles competition (Order of finish: 5, 1, 4, 2, 3, 6)
Pletcher def. Caitlin Herb, 6-1, 6-4
Petrovic def. Tereza Pilzova, 6-3, 6-0
Cheng def. Dominique Beauvis, 4-6, 6-3, 10-6
W. Turley def. Sara Parker, 6-2, 7-5
Gerstner Da Rosa def. Morgan Dickason, 6-3, 6-3
Robertson def. Devi Hasan, 7-5, 6-1