BERKELEY - In the marquee matchup of the Big Slam, Maegan Manasse defeated Carol Zhao for the first time in her career to clinch No. 1 California's eventual 4-3 victory over No. 18 Stanford on Sunday at the Hellman Tennis Complex.
Manasse, ranked seventh, held off the 59th-ranked Zhao, 7-5, 6-4, at court-one singles to make the overall score 4-1 at that point.
Cal improved to 17-0, while Stanford fell to 10-5 after the nonconference match.
“It was a good weekend,” Cal head coach Amanda Augustus said. “We knew we were going to be tested, which is good for us. It's always a great match when we play them. They fight to the end; we fight to the end. I was really pleased to see us come away with a victory. We had a great crowd today, which was exciting. Everybody got to see really great tennis, so I'm happy about that.”
The Pac-12 Networks broadcast the match from Hellman, where the USTA also included the Big Slam in its College MatchDay series.
Stanford led 1-0 after winning the doubles point. Juniors Manasse and Denise Starr, ranked sixth in the nation, fell to the fourth-ranked Taylor Davidson and Caroline Doyle, 6-2, on court one. The Cardinal captured the point when Cal senior Klara Fabikova and freshman Olivia Hauger dropped a 6-3, court-two match to Zhao and Melissa Lord.
The Bears won the first set on four of six singles courts, including on court three, on which Cal's 64th-ranked Lynn Chi was dominant in a 6-1, 6-3 upset of the 57th-ranked Caroline Doyle. That result tied the overall match at 1-1. On court six, sophomore Karla Popovic followed with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Lord to lift Cal to a 2-1 lead. On court two, the 11th-ranked Fabikova then posted a 6-2, 6-3 victory over the 23rd-ranked Davidson and put Cal one point from the win at 3-1.
Those were big wins for all three Bears, as Chi and Fabikova both won in their final regular-season singles matches at Hellman. Popovic improved to 15-0 in dual matches and 27-6 overall in singles this season, though she's the only regular Cal player who's not ranked in the Oracle/ITA singles poll.
“I was really happy for them,” Augustus said of her seniors. “Klara's played Taylor a few times, and Taylor's always tough. She's such a good competitor. So is Doyle. I thought Klara adjusted really well. I wouldn't say Klara played her best tennis today; I thought Lynn played quite well. But Klara just played smart, and that shows her experience as a competitor. And Lynn, too. Lynn knew she had the right game plan, she stuck with it and she kept pressing. It was good for her to get that point on the board so quickly for us.”
Fabikova was tied at 3-3 in the second set with Davidson before she pulled away.
“I was trying to work with what I had at that moment, just trying to play point by point, and I think I did a good job of that,” Fabikova said. “It was getting really close in the second set, but I think when I really focused on the next point and what I needed to do, I was very happy with how I did and how the whole team did. I'm very proud of everyone.”
On court one, Manasse built first-set leads of 3-1 and 4-2 over Zhao. But the tenacious Cardinal star battled back to get within one game of Manasse at 5-4 and 6-5, until the Cal star prevailed at 7-5. Manasse was up 5-2 in the second set, and Zhao got to within one again at 5-4 before Manasse closed out the match.
“I had a lot of fun,” Manasse said of her victory. “Amanda helped me out a lot, and I'm just really excited we got the win.”
“This was a real good not just on-court victory but also a good confidence-boosting victory, because with Carol – you really have to beat her,” Augustus said. “She never gives up, and she's a very good player. I'm really happy for Maegan because not only did that clinch the match for the team, but that really helps Maegan's next step in her development as a player.”
Stanford made the final score close when Caroline Lampl beat the 68th-ranked Hauger, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, on court five and the 118th-ranked Krista Hardebeck upset the 93rd-ranked Starr, 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(4), on court four.
Cal plays its final three regular-season dual matches – which are all Pac-12 matches – on the road, starting with an April 8 contest at Washington State and continuing with an April 9 match at Washington. With the Pac-12 championship possibly on the line, the Bears close the regular season with the second half of the Big Slam on April 16 at Stanford.
No. 1 California (17-0) defeated No. 18 Stanford (10-5) – 4-3
April 3, 2016, in Berkeley, Calif.
Hellman Tennis Complex
Doubles
1. No. 4 Taylor Davidson/Caroline Doyle (Stanford) def. No. 6 Maegan Manasse/Denise Starr (Cal) – 6-2
2. Melissa Lord/Carol Zhao (Stanford) def. Klara Fabikova/Olivia Hauger (Cal) – 6-3
3. No. 47 Krista Hardebeck/Caroline Lampl (Stanford) vs. Lynn Chi/Maria Smith (Cal) – 5-4 Abandoned
Stanford won the doubles point
Order of Finish – 1, 2*
*Clinched the doubles point
Singles
1. No. 7 Maegan Manasse (Cal) def. No. 59 Carol Zhao (Stanford) – 7-5, 6-4
2. No. 11 Klara Fabikova (Cal) def. No. 23 Taylor Davidson (Stanford) – 6-2, 6-3
3. No. 64 Lynn Chi (Cal) def. No. 57 Caroline Doyle (Stanford) – 6-1, 6-3
4. No. 118 Krista Hardebeck (Stanford) def. No. 93 Denise Starr (Cal) – 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(4)
5. Carolina Lampl (Stanford) def. No. 68 Olivia Hauger (Cal) – 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
6. Karla Popovic (Cal) def. Paloma Gomez (Stanford) – 6-3, 6-1
Order of Finish – 3, 6, 2, 1*, 5, 4
*Clinched the overall match
