ROCKY HILL, Conn. – Olivia Hauger remained unbeaten in singles at the ITA National Women's Team Indoor Championship, as the California sophomore beat Georgia Tech's Kenya Jones, 6-1, 6-2, at court-four singles on Friday to clinch the Golden Bears' 4-0 first-round victory over the Yellow Jackets. Hauger also paired with junior Karla Popovic to clinch the doubles point over Georgia Tech at the Tennis and Fitness Center of Rocky Hill.
 
The seventh-seeded and eighth-ranked Bears improved their record to 4-0, while 11th-ranked Georgia Tech is now 5-1. The Bears will next play second-seeded and second-ranked North Carolina in Saturday's quarterfinal round at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Tar Heels defeated Yale, 4-0, in the first round.

The 20th-ranked pair of Popovic and Hauger knocked off Georgia Tech's Jones and Paige Hourigan, 6-3, to clinch doubles on court two. The duo of senior Denise Starr and freshman Alexis Nelson also won in doubles, beating Luca Fabian and Nami Otsuka, 6-3, on court three.

In singles, Maya Jansen beat the 92nd-ranked Otsuka, 6-2, 6-1, on court five, just before the 20th-ranked Popovic completed a 6-0, 6-0 blanking of Johnnise Renaud on court two to make the score 3-0 – until Hauger ended the match.

Hauger is now 5-0 in singles at national indoors, after she won all four of her matches – including the one that clinched the 2016 championship – as a freshman last season.
 
"I like playing indoors," she said. "I feel like I can play pretty well on any surface. It's just a matter of figuring out what I need to do depending on who I'm playing. I executed my strategy pretty well today."
 
"We're happy with the win," Cal head coach Amanda Augustus said. "We got off to a good aggressive start in the doubles, because we knew they have good doubles teams and we had to really attack first. We did a good job of that on all three courts."
 
Snow in the area delayed the start of Friday's matches by 30 minutes.
 
"It was very snowy yesterday," Hauger said. "It was fun because we don't get snow in California, though I get snow back home in Oklahoma sometimes."
 
"That's what makes tournaments like this really special because you have to make adjustments and take every match as it comes," Augustus said of the weather. "I thought after the doubles we maintained our level and focus in the singles. We focused really well on all the courts."
 
The national indoor tournament, which is being played at Yale's Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center in nearby New Haven as well as at the Tennis and Fitness Center of Rocky Hill, concludes with the final on Monday.
 
ITA National Women's Team Indoor Championship
Feb. 10, 2017, in Rocky Hill, Conn.
Tennis and Fitness Center of Rocky Hill
 
First Round
 
No. 8 [7] California (4-0) defeated No. 11 Georgia Tech (5-1), 4-0
 
Doubles
1. No. 11 Rasheeda McAdoo/Johnnise Renaud (Georgia Tech) vs. No. 49 Maya Jansen/Maegan Manasse (Cal), 5-3 Abandoned
2. No. 20 Olivia Hauger/Karla Popovic (Cal) def. Kenya Jones/Paige Hourigan (Georgia Tech), 6-3
3. Alexis Nelson/Denise Starr (Cal) def. Luca Fabian/Nami Otsuka (Georgia Tech), 6-3
 
Cal won the doubles point
 
Order of Finish: 3, 2
 
*Clinched the doubles point
 
Singles
1. No. 36 Maegan Manasse (Cal) vs. No. 43 Rasheeda McAdoo (Georgia Tech), 6-3, 5-3 Abandoned
2. No. 20 Karla Popovic (Cal) def. Johnnise Renaud (Georgia Tech), 6-0, 6-0
3. Paige Hourigan (Georgia Tech) vs. Denise Starr (Cal), 7-5, 2-1 Abandoned
4. Olivia Hauger (Cal) def. Kenya Jones (Georgia Tech), 6-1, 6-2
5. Maya Jansen (Cal) def. No. 92 Nami Otsuka (Georgia Tech), 6-2, 6-1
6. Maria Smith (Cal) vs. Nadia Gizdova (Georgia Tech), 6-2, 3-2 Abandoned
 
Order of Finish: 5, 2, 4^
 
^Clinched the overall match