Tempe, Ariz. -Â Arizona finished the first day of the Pac-12 South Invitational 1-1, defeating Utah but earning their first loss of the season against the No. 14 ranked Washington Huskies.
Arizona secured a 3-2 victory in their first match of the day against Utah. Later in the evening, the Wildcats fell to the Huskies 1-4.
Pair
Hope Shannon/
Grace Cook fell just short in a close three-set match against Utah, winning the first set 21-19, then losing the final two sets 16-21, 13-15, respectively.
Shannon and Cook fought another tough battle against the Huskies in the evening, ultimately falling in two sets 21-14, 21-18.
Abby Russell/
Olivia McElroy lost their first match of the season against Utah's Rylee Johnson/Bella Vezzani in a close competition at No. 2, falling 22-20, 19-21, 12-15.
Later in the day, the two lost another tight three-set match against Washington, putting the pair at 7-2 on the season.
At No. 3, Arizona pair
Kylee Fitzsimmons/
Annie Kost defeated the Utes in two sets 21-12, 21-12, finishing fourth and clinching the dual win for Arizona.
Fitzsimmons and Kost fell to Washington's Scarlett Dahl/Kendall Mather in their evening match 13-21, 15-21.
Jess Horwath/
Kate Phillips earned a point for the Wildcats in a close matchup against Utah's Marissa Koch/Kylie Pitzak, winning 22-20, 21-19. Incredible defensive plays by
Kate Phillips and
Jess Horwath secured this win for the freshman pair.
Later in the day, Phillips and Horwath again demonstrated their perseverance, coming back from a 21-17 loss in the first set to win the second 25-23, but the pair ultimately fell in a back-and-forth battle in the third set 20-18.
Miranda Erro/Ashlynn Zilliken had a strong showing in both of their matches. Against Utah at No. 5, the pair defeated the Utes 21-14, 21-15. In their evening match, Zilliken and Erro secured Arizona's first point of the dual, defeating the Huskies 21-14, 21-19.
The Wildcats will play again on Sunday, facing No. 3 USC at 12 p.m. and No. 10 ASU at 4 p.m.
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Arizona – 3, Utah – 2
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Court 1: Langley Griffin and Kate McAlister (UTAH) def.
Hope Shannon and
Grace Cook (ARIZ) 19-21, 21-16, 15-13
Court 2: Rylee Johnson and Bella Vezzani (UTAH) def.
Abby Russell and
Olivia McElroy (ARIZ), 20-22, 21-19, 15-12
Court 3: Kylee Fitzsimmons and
Annie Kost (ARIZ) def. Chloe Narancich and Lauren Sayre (UTAH) 21-12, 21-12
Court 4: Jess Horwath and
Kate Phillips (ARIZ) def. Marissa Koch and Kylie Pitzak (UTAH) 22-20, 21-19
Court 5: Ashlyn Zilliken and
Miranda Erro (ARIZ) def. Milan Ray and Sonja Wessel (UTAH) 21-14, 21-15
Order of finish: 4, 2, 5, 3, 1
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Arizona – 1 , Washington – 4
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Court 1: Piper Monk-Heidrich and Maggy Rabitsch (WASH) def.
Hope Shannon and
Grace Cook (ARIZ) 21-14, 21-18
Court 2: Zoey Henson and Lauren Wilcock (WASH) def.
Abby Russell and
Olivia McElroy (ARIZ) 22-24, 21-18, 15-9
Court 3: Scarlett Dahl and Kendall Mather (WASH) def.
Kylee Fitzsimmons and
Annie Kost (ARIZ) 21-13, 21-15
Court 4: Brooke Balue and Josie Ulrich (WASH) def.
Jess Horwath and
Kate Phillips (ARIZ) 21-7, 23-25, 20-18
Court 5: Miranda Erro and
Ashlyn Zilliken (ARIZ) def. Kierstyn Barton and Natalie Martin (WASH) 21-14, 21-19
Order of finish: 2, 4, 5, 1, 3
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