The California women’s tennis team, ranked seventh nationally, experienced its first defeat of the dual-match season on Friday afternoon. Playing at the Hellman Tennis Complex in Berkeley, Cal fell 4-1 to No. 27 NC State.
With this result, Cal’s record stands at 4-1 overall and 2-1 in ACC play. NC State improved to 8-4 for the season and started conference competition with a win.
NC State secured the doubles point by sweeping all three matches. The clinching match came when Jasmine Conway and Anna Zyryanova, ranked No. 29 in doubles, defeated Cal’s Berta Passola Folch and Tiziana-Marie Schomburg with a score of 6-4 on court two.
In singles play, Mao Mushika provided Cal’s lone point. Ranked No. 55 nationally, Mushika beat NC State’s Anna Zyryanova (No. 60) in straight sets, 6-2, 7-5 on court three to level the match at one point each.
However, NC State then won three consecutive singles matches to secure victory. The deciding point was earned when Cal freshman Laura Cilekova lost to Lavinia Tanasie (No. 28) in a three-set match: 6-1, 6-7(1), 6-0 on court four.
Cal will continue its ACC schedule at home on Saturday against Wake Forest at noon Pacific Time.
For updates about the team throughout the season, fans can follow @CalWomensTennis on X and Instagram or visit their Facebook page.
