WALLA WALLA, Wash. (Feb. 24, 2019) – Caltech women's tennis won its first match of the 2019 season in style with a decisive 7-2 victory over No. 27 Whitman College on Saturday.

The Beavers took a 2-1 lead in doubles after a tight 8-7 victory at court three by rookies Michelle Hyun (Cerritos, Calif. / Gretchen Whitney) and Jennifer Yu (Queens, N.Y. / Stuyvesant) before sweeping the top five singles courts. Three of those victories came against regionally ranked foes.

Freshman Anna Tifrea (Fullerton, Calif. / Troy) and sophomore Ankita Roychoudhury (Madison, Conn. / Daniel Hand) picked up Caltech's first point with a dominant 8-1 showing at second doubles. Tifrea added the quickest point at #2 singles (6-2, 6-2) for the first collegiate victory against a nationally ranked individual (No. 50, West No. 12). Classmate Hyun brought the Beavers within match point as she rallied from a narrow first-set defeat to pull out the three-set win (5-7, 6-4, 6-1) at court three against the 13th-ranked player in the West region.

Yu soon clinched the match after grinding out a 6-3, 6-0 decision at #5 singles. Senior Kana Moriyama (Redmond, Wash. / Redmond) then notched her second key individual victory of the season at the top singles court, defeating the West region's fifth-ranked player (No. 27 nationally) in a three-set marathon, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Sophomore Sarina Liu (Rolling Hills, Calif. / Palos Verdes Peninsula) capped the day with a win at fifth singles, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1.

Head Coach Mandy Gamble and the Beavers finish their Northwest trip tomorrow against No. 25 Linfield College.

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