Box Score IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine took down UC Riverside, 6-1, in their home opening contest and earned their first win of the year.

The Anteaters and the Highlanders played the double portion clinch and played out all the singles matches.
 
The sister duo of Carolyna Fowler and Emily Fowler worked quick to sweep their opposition, 6-0, to take the point lead for the doubles portion of the match.
 
UCI dropped at No. 2 which put all the pressure on court three. Both sides kept it close but Haily Huynh and Amanda Perez were able to pull away, 7-5, to clinch the doubles point.
 
Larissa Teramura (W, 6-3, 6-0) and Jenna Schlatter (W, 6-1, 6-4) were the first to be done with their singles matches at the No. 5 and No. 1 spots respectively.
 
Perez continued her winning ways in her No. 3 singles match to clinch the victory for UC Irvine in her 6-1, 7-5 victory.
 
"It was great to get on the board with our first win of the season," exclaimed head coach Elizabeth Ferris Smith. "UC Riverside played tough, tricky doubles but we handled it well enough to get the point. The Fowler's did an excellent job playing their brand of tennis in tight situations and for Haily and Amanda to win after being paired up an hour before the match shows how much they want it--no excuses!"
 
"We had strong leads on all singles courts, but UC Riverside made some adjustments and we had to really pick it up to close out the match. It was great to see some recent alumni out here enjoying the match, especially Sergeant Marivick. Lastly, big shout out to the facility crew and Bren staff for getting these courts ready so we could play our match on time. It was a huge effort."

DOUBLES
Carolyna Fowler/Emily Fowler (UCI) defeated Brionna Nguyen/Kamya Nair (UCR), 6-0
Crystal Kim/Maya Youssef (UCR) defeated Kayla Meraz/Jenna Schlatter (UCI), 6-0
Haily Huynh/Amanda Perez (UCI) vs. Niki Shahbazi/Sydney Tran (UCR), 7-5
 
SINGLES DRAWS
Jenna Schlatter (UCI) defeated Nguyen (UCR), 6-1, 6-4
Kayla Meraz (UCI) defeated Youssef (UCR), 6-3, 7-6 (7-0)
Amanda Perez (UCI) defeated Kim (UCR), 6-1, 7-5
Haily Huynh (UCI) defeated Nair (UCR), 6-1
Larissa Teramura (UCI) defeated Tran (UCR), 6-4
Kei Kato (UCR) defeated Carolyna Fowler (UCI), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

EXHIBITION
E. Fowler (UCI) defeated Shahbazi (UCR), 6-4 (one set singles)
Nour Khayat (UCI) defeated Shahbazi (UCR), 6-2 (one set singles)

WHAT THE PLAYERS HAD TO SAY:
"I am very happy with the way Amanda and I played. It was a match time decision to pair us together and we don't usually play or practice together, but we were ready to fight. My opponent in singles really stepped up in the second forcing me to step up my game and fight to the end. Everyone played very well in both doubles and singles, even though some had to move up a spot. We are happy with our first win at home and looking forward to another one this weekend. Let's go 'Eaters!" –Haily Huynh
 
"I'm proud of the way our team continued our high energy following the Hawai'i match. As a team, we had a strong showing in doubles. We knew doubles was tied up and it was down to Haily and me to clinch the point. Although we don't typically play together, we did a great job working as a team and played some of our best tennis the last two games to get the point. The high energy led the way in our singles matches, with many of us getting the quick lead in our first sets. Second sets became more of a challenge, but we remained confident and focused on closing it out. I'm happy for our home opener win and am excited for our upcoming match this Saturday. Go 'Eaters!" –Amanda Perez
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine continues their home stand with Santa Clara on Saturday Feb. 10 with an 11 a.m. start.