ATHENS, Ga. – Another postseason run came to an end for California, as the 13th-seeded/13th-ranked Golden Bears lost to fourth-seeded/third-ranked Vanderbilt, 4-1, on Friday in the NCAA round of 16 at the University of Georgia's Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
 
In her last dual match as a Bear, grad student Maya Jansen won at court-five singles, beating Georgina Sellyn, 6-4, 6-3.
 
With Cal trailing 3-1, senior Maegan Manasse – ranked 34th – was on the verge of upsetting Vanderbilt's fourth-ranked Astra Sharma on court one. The Cal star won the first set 6-4 and was playing a second-set tiebreaker when the match ended. The Commodores clinched the victory when the 102nd-ranked Christina Rosca defeated 123rd-ranked Cal senior Denise Starr, 7-5, 6-1, at court-three singles, and all the remaining matches were abandoned.
 
Jansen also won in doubles, as the 34th-ranked pair of Jansen and Manasse upset the top-ranked duo of Sharma and Emily Smith, 6-4, on court one. But the Commodores won the other two doubles matches, clinching the point when Sydney Campbell and Emma Kurtz upset the 55th-ranked Cal duo of junior Karla Popovic and sophomore Olivia Hauger, 7-5, on court two.
 
Cal winds up the team part of the season with a 19-6 record. Vanderbilt improves to 23-5 and advances to the quarterfinals.
 
"It was a great match," Cal head coach Amanda Augustus said. "Vanderbilt's a good team, and we're a good team. They took advantage of opportunities better than we did. Unfortunately we weren't able to close out our doubles point. But I thought we really competed hard in singles. On some of the courts we played really, really well and stuck to the strategy we needed to. At a couple points in the match momentum was not swinging enough in our direction, and Vanderbilt was able to close it out.
 
"I'm really proud of what this team has accomplished this year. They fought hard and gave their very best today. That's all I can ask for as a coach, and they also represented Cal well. Unfortunately the season ends for some of them, but some of them get to compete in the individual championships. We'll learn from this. Everybody on the team learned a lot from this, and we'll use it as we move forward."
 
Jansen, Manasse and Popovic will play in next week's individual championships. Manasse and the 10th-ranked Popovic will play in the NCAA Singles Championship that starts on Wednesday, while the duo of Jansen and Manasse will play in the NCAA Doubles Championship that starts on Thursday in Athens.
 
"Maya played really well today," Augustus added. "Her experience showed today in doubles and in singles. Fortunately she's got an opportunity to play more tennis in her last year. She's been a tremendous asset to our program – on the court, off the court, in the classroom. I really hope that she'll be able to finish on a high note. She's brought a lot to the team, and I'm really pleased to have her as a Bear."
 
NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship Round of 16
 
[4] No. 3 Vanderbilt (23-5) defeated [13] No. 13 California (19-6), 4-1
May 19, 2017, in Athens, Ga.
Dan Magill Tennis Complex
 
Doubles
1. No. 34 Maegan Manasse/Maya Jansen (Cal) def. No. 1 Astra Sharma/Emily Smith (Vanderbilt), 6-4
2. Sydney Campbell/Emma Kurtz (Vanderbilt) def. No. 55 Olivia Hauger/Karla Popovic (Cal), 7-5*
3. Christina Rosca/Fernanda Contreras (Vanderbilt) def. Denise Starr/Maria Smith (Cal), 6-3
 
Vanderbilt won the doubles point
 
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2*
 
*Clinched the doubles point
 
Singles
1. No. 34 Maegan Manasse (Cal) vs. No. 4 Astra Sharma (Vanderbilt), 6-4, 6-6 Unfinished
2. No. 15 Sydney Campbell (Vanderbilt) def. No. 10 Karla Popovic (Cal), 6-4, 6-1
3. No. 102 Christina Rosca (Vanderbilt) def. No. 123 Denise Starr (Cal), 7-5, 6-1^
4. Emma Kurtz (Vanderbilt) vs. Olivia Hauger (Cal), 6-4, 4-3 Unfinished
5. Maya Jansen (Cal) def. Georgina Sellyn (Vanderbilt), 6-4, 6-3
6. No. 87 Fernanda Contreras (Vanderbilt) def. Maria Smith (Cal), 6-3, 6-2
 
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 2, 3^