STANFORD, Calif. – In just their fifth match – and first tournament – together as a doubles team, California's Klara Fabikova and Olivia Hauger fell to Stanford's Taylor Davidson and Caroline Doyle in Tuesday's final of the USTA/ITA Northwest Regional Championships. The third-seeded Golden Bears lost to the top-seeded Cardinal pair, 7-6(5), 6-3, as the tournament came to a close at Stanford's Taube Family Stadium.
“The whole match was fantastic,” Cal head coach Amanda Augustus said. “There was high quality doubles play from all four players. There were tremendous rallies, with poaching, overheads and two teams battling with each other. But we just came up a couple points short. I was very pleased. Unfortunately, it didn't go our way, but it was a great tournament for Klara and Olivia considering it was their first time playing together.
“We did a good job of trying to poach first. We were setting up the points well in the first set. We were getting some free points off of Klara's serve and off of some returns. But I think there were a couple volleys we could've had that we missed towards end of the set. That was what the difference was. We fought well. Even though the score in the second set doesn't look close, it was definitely just as close as the first set.”
With their win, Doyle and Davidson earned a doubles berth to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships held Nov. 12-15 in Flushing Meadows, New York. Fabikova and Hauger must wait – along with most of the Bears – to see if they will earn an at-large or wild-card spot in New York.
Cal junior Maegan Manasse clinched a singles spot at national indoors with her semifinal appearance in the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Championships earlier this month. The pair of Manasse and junior Denise Starr also qualified for New York by reaching the doubles final – which they later won – at the All-American
“There's a shot,” Augustus said of other Bears joining Starr and Manasse at indoors. “We'll know more over the next few days. Klara and Olivia made finals in a really strong region, which helps them. We have a few players that have a shot. We know we have two Bears going, but hopefully we can get a few more selected.”
Fabikova was attempting to earn her second consecutive regional doubles championship, albeit with a different partner. Last year, she won the title with now undergraduate assistant coach Zsofi Susanyi. The two went onto reach the NCAA doubles final in May.
Also a strong singles player who's ranked 16th in the ITA preseason poll, Fabikova is a force with whomever she's paired with in doubles.
“She's always had an aggressive game style on her serves and returns,” Augustus said of Fabikova. “Over the years since she's been at Cal, she's developed her volleys and her movement. She's a threat wherever she is on the court. She's learned how to read the opponents well and compete very hard.”
Hauger has also shown well in a college career that includes just 21 matches so far.
“Her style is similar to Zsofi's,” Fabikova said. “Whomever I play with, I'm the more aggressive player, so I need someone who keeps more balls in and sets up volleys at the net. We just complement each other well.
“She's really open to trying new things and she's communicating really well. Obviously she wants to win and has this drive for victory. She just has this willingness to learn and to do whatever it takes to win the match.”
Cal Result at the USTA/ITA Northwest Regional Championships
Oct. 27, 2015, in Stanford, Calif.
Taube Family Tennis Stadium
Doubles Main Draw – Final
[1] Taylor Davidson/Caroline Doyle (Stanford) def. [3] Klara Fabikova/Olivia Hauger (Cal) – 7-6(5), 6-3
