The windy Phoenix weather didn’t stop the Vandal women’s tennis team from capping off another impressive road trip.
Idaho swept the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 7-0 Sunday and handled the Grand Canyon Antelopes 4-0 to improve its record to 14-3.
The Vandals began Sunday by winning the doubles match, 2-1. No. 2 pair Galina Bykova and Rita Bermudez took their match 8-4, and No. 3 pair Belen Barcenilla and Sophie Vickers won 8-2.
From there, Idaho won six straight singles matches to complete the sweep. Bermudez defeated NAU’s Tatum Rochin 6-2, 4-6, 11-9, ending in a lengthy tiebreaker.
“It was a good effort across the board,” Idaho coach Jeff Beaman said. “Whether people were on the court and down in their match or whether they were winning, it was overall a great team effort.”
Senior Victoria Lozano built on her already impressive season by winning the No. 1 singles match 6-4, 6-4 against NAU’s Johanna Vang.
The second leg of the doubleheader was cut short Monday, because the team needed to catch its afternoon flight out of Phoenix.
The match against the Antelopes marks the eighth sweep the Vandals have completed this year.
“It was very close — the match honestly could have gone either way,” Beaman said. “They were a very tough and well coached. They’re a smart team and it’s considered a good win.”
The games helped the team prepare for the weather conditions they’ll likely see when they travel to Las Cruces, N.M., for the WAC Championship.
“It was hot and sunny with big winds,” Beaman said. “There’s not as much wind as we would expect in Las Cruces but very bright, sunny and warm. It’s another match getting us ready.”
With the last few matches of the season looming, Idaho will have over a week off to prepare for another road trip down south. The Vandals will travel to Texas and New Mexico for a weekend tripleheader.
They will face UTEP in El Paso, Texas, on April 11. Idaho will then travel to the site of the WAC Championship, Las Cruces, N.M., to play Arkansas State and New Mexico State on April 12 and 13 respectively.
Beaman said the match against New Mexico State could help the team scout for a potential matchup in the championship, as well as feeling out the weather conditions.
“We are projected as two of the top teams in the conference,” Beaman said. “It’s a team we could be potentially playing in the final at their home court with their crowd and the same conditions we’ll possibly be playing in.”
Conor Gleason can be reached at [email protected]