The No. 29 University of Redlands women's tennis upset the 27th-ranked Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz on Wednesday, recording a 5-4 decision over the regional foe at Verdieck Courts. Competing in a non-conference match, the Bulldogs gained a pivotal point at No. 2 doubles before firing off three wins in singles, which gave up a combined four games in the process.
In doubles, the No. 3 duo of freshman Maddie Morton (Henderson, NV) and junior Julia Galbraith (Tacoma, WA) shut down their opponents with an impressive 8-0 performance.
Although Santa Cruz knotted the score with a victory at No. 1, the Bulldogs battled back with a critical outcome at the No. 3 slot. The rookie tandem of Ceara Sumida (Hilo, HI) and Julia Pollak (Holland, MI) stepped up with an 8-6 victory, which proved to be the difference in an otherwise very even match.
In singles, the teams traded punches to make it 4-3 in favor of Redlands. Sophomore Paige Press (La Jolla, CA) cruised to a 6-1, 6-0 triumph at No. 4 and junior Shannon Cassidy (Yuba City, CA) prevailed in a 6-2, 6-0 showing.
The deciding match came at the No. 6 slot, where Pollak unleashed a 6-0, 6-1 victory to secure the Bulldogs' seventh overall win on the season.
Redlands (7-4) heads to Occidental College on Friday for its first Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) match of the season, beginning at 2 p.m. against the Tigers.
