College Tennis News - Women of Troy Sweep Through 2013 Start-up

LOS ANGELES, CALIF. -- The No. 4 USC women's tennis team kicked off the new year with a decisive victory and with two newcomers in the win column as the Trojans tacked up a 7-0 shutout of visiting No. 68 UC Irvine today at Marks Stadium. It was a sweep down the line for USC, who got a well-rounded effort from its balanced and talented 2013 lineup.

In doubles action, the nation's No. 1 team was in a tough position early in its match, as USC's Kaitlyn Christian and Sabrina Santamaria found themselves in a 1-4 hole. The top-ranked Trojans fell behind 2-5 as well before finally finding their high gear and jetting past UC Irvine's Gong/Smith for a come-from-behind 8-5 win that notched USC's first victory of the day. At the No. 2 slot, USC's #13 Gabriella DeSimone and Zoë Scandalis also shrugged off an early deficit in their match before powering up and putting Mamiit/Stadfelt out of reach for an 8-4 win that locked in a 1-0 advantage for the Women of Troy in the match. That win went on the board just as USC's new pairing of Giuliana Olmos and Ellie Yates -- both playing in their first matches as Trojans -- made their winning push to register an 8-5 win over Facey/Schweyer at the No. 3 position.

Singles play was dominated by the Women of Troy as well. USC's two newcomers Ellie Yates and Giuliana Olmos were both eager to notch their first singles wins of their USC careers, with Yates pushing out to the first singles win of the day with a near-perfect 6-0, 6-1 victory over Nakisa Vahdat. Olmos rallied next and tallied her own shutout set in finishing off Ali Facey 6-2, 6-0. Those wins set up Gabriella DeSimone at court four for the clinching victory -- a feat she made a regular practice of last season as a freshman. DeSimone plugged a 6-1 6-2 win up over Sarah Gong, and USC had its first win of 2013 in the books.

That left USC's upperclassmen left to round things out. They all would do so in straight sets. Junior Kaitlyn Christian swarmed her way to a 6-2, 6-1 win over Maravik Mamiit on court two to get USC to a 5-0 advantage. Senior Valeria Pulido finished up next, holding serve for a 6-3, 6-3 win over Sarah Stadfelt at the No. 5 spot, while fellow senior Danielle Lao also held strong from the service line to wrap up a 6-3, 6-4 win on court one after trailing UCI's Krisitna Smith 0-3 in the second set.

The Trojans now split up for two individual tournaments this weekend, with action going on in Las Vegas and Palm Springs.

#4 USC vs. #68 UC Irvine
Jan. 16, 2013 - Marks Stadium
DOUBLES
(1) #1 Christian/Santamaria (USC) def. Gong/Smith (UCI) -- 8-5
(2) #13 DeSimone/Zoë Scandalis (USC) def. Mamiit/Stadfelt (UCI) -- 8-4*
(3) Olmos/Yates (USC) def. Facey/Schweyer (UCI) -- 8-5
USC wins doubles point.
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3
SINGLES
(1) #14 Danielle Lao (USC) vs. Kristina Smith (UCI) --
(2) Kaitlyn Christian (USC) def. Maravik Mamiit (UCI) -- 6-2, 6-1
(3) #56 Gabriella DeSimone (USC) def. Sarah Gong (UCI) -- 6-1, 6-2*
(4) Giuliana Olmos (USC) def. Ali Facey (UCI) -- 6-2, 6-0
(5) Valeria Pulido (USC) def. Sarah Stadfelt (UCI) -- 6-3, 6-3
(6) Ellie Yates (USC) def. Nakisa Vahdat (UCI) -- 6-0, 6-1
Order of finish: 6, 4, 3*, 2,