SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth women's tennis team picked up its first win of the season in impressive fashion on Saturday, defeating visiting Pacific (Ore.) 8-1 at the Scotford Tennis Center.
The Pirates improved to 1-4 overall and 1-3 in the Northwest Conference while the Boxers dropped to 2-3, 1-3.
Whitworth grabbed an early 3-0 lead by sweeping the doubles matches. Emma Jo Wiley and Jennifer Adams got the Bucs on the board first with an 8-4 win over Katlyn Lomartire and Mai Kobayashi at #2 doubles. Then Erica Lee and Emily Sandquist pulled out an 8-6 victory over Marissa Hayashi and Chantelle Baclay at #3 doubles. Bella Hoyos and Katie Lacayo, playing at #1, topped Danielle du Plooy and Sophia Nishimura 8-5.
Wiley then increased Whitworth's lead to 4-0 when she defeated du Plooy 6-3, 6-4 at #2 singles. But Baclay earned Pacific its only point of the match by topping Adams 7-5, 6-1 at #3 to pull the Boxers within 4-1.
Hoyos clinched the team win for Whitworth by winning the #1 singles contest against Lomartire in a matchup of First Team All-NWC honorees from 2016. Hoyos won 6-3, 7-6 (9).
Lee got by Nishimura 7-5, 6-3 at #4 singles, while Sandquist topped Kobayashi 6-0, 6-3 at #6 singles. Lacayo, seeing her first action of the season, earned a 6-3, 6-1 win over Hayashi at #5 singles.
Whitworth will look to pick up its second win of the weekend, in addition to its second win of the season, when the Bucs host Willamette University on Sunday.
