Surprise, Ariz. – The Spirit women's tennis team showed resilience across a pair of matches at the Surprise Tennis Courts, battling through a tough result against Stanton before narrowly falling in a competitive showdown with the College of Idaho Yotes.
OUAZ 1, Stanton 6 (Mar. 25)
OUAZ opened the stretch against Stanton, dropping a 1–6 decision despite several competitive moments throughout the lineup. In doubles play, Martina Antich and Michelle Pugh kept things close at the No. 1 spot, falling 4–6, while Antonia Kostoff and Sienna Johnson were locked at 5–5 before their match went unfinished.
The highlight for the Spirit came in singles, where Michelle Pugh delivered a gritty comeback at No. 2. After losing the opening set, she rallied to take the second and ultimately secured the match in a third-set tiebreak, earning OUAZ's lone point of the contest. The rest of the lineup continued to compete, but Stanton maintained control to secure the team victory.
OUAZ 3, College of Idaho 4 (Mar. 28)
OUAZ responded with one of its strongest overall performances of the season against College of Idaho, coming up just short in a 3–4 loss. The Yotes claimed the early advantage by sweeping doubles play, putting the Spirit in an early hole.
The Spirit answered in singles with an impressive push. Martina Antich set the tone at No. 1 with a dominant 6–1, 6–0 win, while Antonia Kostoff battled through a three-set match to earn a victory at No. 3. Sienna Johnson added another strong performance with a straight-set win at No. 4, helping OUAZ take three singles points.
Michelle Pugh fought through a tight two-set battle at No. 2 that featured a second-set tiebreak, while Nikola Rusinova pushed her match to three sets at No. 5 before narrowly falling. Despite the comeback effort, the early doubles deficit proved to be the difference as the Yotes edged out the match.
Across both contests, the Spirit displayed growth and competitiveness, highlighted by three singles victories against College of Idaho and a clutch performance from Pugh earlier in the week. OUAZ will look to carry that momentum forward as they continue their season.
Up Next
The Spirit will finish up their regular season with a game at home against Northern New Mexico on Thursday, April 2nd at 9:00 AM (MST) and on the road against Arizona Christian on Friday, April 10th at 5:00 PM (MST).
