Eastern Washington (7-7) at
UC Irvine (12-4)
Date: Sunday, March 24
Time: 11 a.m. (PDT)
Location: Anteater Tennis Stadium - Irvine, Calif.

UC Irvine (12-4) at
BYU (7-5)
Date: Thursday, March 28
Time: 11 a.m. (PDT)
Location: BYU Outdoor Tennis Courts - Provo, Utah
Live Stream // Live Results

Notes (PDF)

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's tennis team will wrap up a five-match homestand on Sunday, March 24, when it takes on Eastern Washington at 11 a.m. at Anteater Tennis Stadium. UCI then hits the road for the first time in over a month, traveling to Provo, Utah, to square off against BYU on Thursday, March 28 (11 a.m. PT).
 
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine has an overall record of 12-4 with a conference record of 2-1.
• The Anteaters have already bettered their win total from each of the last three years.
• This week features two of UCI's last four non-conference matches as it gets back into Big West play on April 6.
• The 'Eaters are 11-0 when winning the doubles point.
• As a team, UC Irvine has a win percentage of over .680 in both singles (62-28) and doubles (31-13).
• Freshman Jessica Tsukiji (9-1) has won five matches in a row with her last loss coming on Feb. 15.
• Tsukiji's nine wins lead the team, while Arianna Tilbury and Flora Amiri are tied for second with eight victories.
• Tilbury and Alyssia Fossorier are tops on the squad with nine doubles wins each.
• The two have teamed up together to go 4-2 at No. 3 in six of UCI's seven spring dual matches.
• Amiri, Tsukiji and Stephanie Hazell are a combined 6-2 when playing at No. 1 singles.
• Last year, the 'Eaters were named an ITA All-Academic Team with a combined 3.25 cumulative GPA.
• Five players were also named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
 
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine saw its five-match win streak snapped with a tough 4-1 loss against Illinois State at Anteater Tennis Stadium on Thursday, March 14. The 'Eaters found themselves in an early hole as the Redbirds won at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles for the 1-0 lead. Stephanie Hazell and Flora Amiri were up 6-5 at the top of the lineup, but their match was called after Illinois State clinched the point. Amiri (No. 3) picked up UCI's lone victory in singles play as she defeated Jana Kustkova, 6-1, 6-1 on court three.
 
"I thought we created a lot of opportunities for ourselves that we didn't capitalize on enough," head coach Elizabeth Ferris said after the match. "When we played focused and disciplined, we could reel-off several points and games in a row. For us, it's about sustaining an aggressive mentality throughout the entire match. We have to love the fight and continue to find ways to break through mental barriers, not succumb to them."
 
THE OPPONENTS
Eastern Washington is 7-7 overall, and 2-5 on the road. The Eagles make their way down to Southern California for two matches, starting at UC Irvine then heading over to CSUN (March 26). This is the first meeting between UCI and EWU.
 
BYU (7-5) will host Gonzaga before welcoming the Anteaters to Provo, Utah. The Cougars have been impressive on their home court where they are 4-1. This is the second-straight year UC Irvine will face BYU. The 'Eaters dropped a 7-0 decision in Irvine on Feb. 8, 2018.
 
POISED UNDER PRESSURE
UC Irvine is 3-1 in matches decided by one point this year. The Anteaters recently earned back-to-back 4-3 wins against Villanova (March 1) and Louisiana (March 5). On Feb. 16, they also upended UC Davis, 4-3, for their first victory over the Aggies since 2016. The 'Eaters won the doubles point, but UCD came back to knot the score at 3-3 in singles. It all came down to court six where Arianna Tilbury clinched the match with a 7-6, 6-2 triumph over Jessica Walker. UCI's only 4-3 loss was at Siena in the fall (Oct. 6).
 
HOME SWEET HOME
After being on the road for the entirety of the fall campaign, UC Irvine hosts 10 matches in the spring. UCI will be at Anteater Tennis Stadium for eight of its first nine contests in 2019. The 'Eaters are currently 4-2 at home.
 
YOUNG GUNS
UC Irvine has a young team with seven underclassmen, including six freshmen. Making an immediate impact in their first collegiate seasons are Jessica Tsukiji and Alyssia Fossorier, who are tops on the team in singles and doubles victories, respectively. The 'Eaters do have strong leadership coming from their six upperclassmen, including seniors Stephanie Hazell and Danielle Garrido.
 
LOCAL KIDS
Twelve of the 13 Anteaters on the roster are California products. Fossorier is the lone non-California native as she hails from Honolulu, Hawaii.
 
OCTOBER SUCCESS
In their nine fall dual matches, the Anteaters combined to go 41-10 in singles and 21-5 in doubles. Flora Amiri, Danielle Garrido and Gillian Parker tied for the team lead with five singles wins each. Arianna Tilbury saw the most success in doubles with six victories, playing at the top two spots.
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine will host Hope International on Friday, April 5, in a match that was rescheduled from March 2 due to inclement weather. First serve is set for 9 a.m. The 'Eaters will then resume Big West play at home against Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, April 6 (11 a.m.).