Lopes extend winning streak with 5-2 win

Tuesday, March 23

Phoenix, Ariz.

3 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Idaho State

3/23/2021 8:35:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score

GCU continues to fire on all cylinders for 4th straight win

By: Jerob Moon

The Grand Canyon women's tennis team maintained its hot play, rolling to its fourth straight victory Tuesday with a 5-2 win over Idaho State in the first of two meetings at GCU Tennis Facility.

The Lopes (5-7) took the doubles point and the first three singles matches to jump out to a 4-0 lead before sealing the win later in singles.

In doubles, GCU picked up wins at the bottom two courts to take the points. Lopes freshman Tayler Andersen and senior Joely Lomas won convincingly 6-1 at No. 3 for their fifth win in a row. GCU seniors Emilia Occhipinti and Autum Prudhomme, who recently named WAC Doubles Players of the Week, also won their fifth match in a row with a 6-3 win at No. 2, clinching the doubles point. The No. 1 Lopes pair of Natasha Puehse and Jana Weiss was leading its match when it was left unfinished.

In singles, the Lopes won the first three matches in straight sets to clinch the team win. Puehse won her fifth straight match with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 1 for her team-leading seventh singles win. About 20 minutes later, Occhipinti matched Puehse with her fifth win in a row and seventh singles win this season with a 6-0, 6-4 win at No. 2.

With the team leading 3-0, Weiss clinched the dual-match win for the Lopes with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Idaho State's Hana Cho.

In the final three singles matches, Prudhomme fought hard in a 5-7, 5-7 defeat at No. 5 while Lomas picked up a three-set win at No. 4 that included a 10-point third set tiebreaker. At No. 6, Andersen faced a 10-point tiebreaker but lost in a close 10-8 result after splitting the first two sets.

The Lopes will honor their four seniors Wednesday before facing the Bengals again. Senior Day ceremonies begin at 10:45 a.m. with the match starting at 11 a.m.