By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- The Willamette University women's tennis team took advantage of the great weather on Sunday, March 17 at the WU Tennis Courts to down Northwest Conference rival Pacific Lutheran University, 6-3. The Bearcats won #1 and #2 doubles to take a 2-1 lead into the singles matches, and then added victories at #1, #3, #5 and #6 singles to close out the overall match. Willamette evened its record at 2-2 on the season and 1-1 in the NWC. Pacific Lutheran fell to 2-6 overall, 0-4 in the NWC.

"It was such a fun match today, and I'm super proud of my team," Willamette Head Coach Bryce Parmelly said. "What I am most impressed with is how the team continues to compete from start to finish, regardless of the score. Siena and Sarah were tested and had to close their matches out under a lot of pressure. Alexis played one of the best matches of her season thus far. Today was a big step in the right direction."

Sarah Dean (So., Boise, ID/Timberline HS) and Robin Pashek (So., The Dalles, OR/The Dalles-Wahtonka HS) secured the win at #1 doubles by defeating Hannah Jeffries and Bayley Gochanour of PLU, 8-5. At #2 doubles, Willamette's team of Sylvia Marr (So., Grants Pass, OR/Hidden Valley HS) and Alexis Gjurasic (Sr., Olympia, WA/Capital HS) rolled past Kristi Floyd and Michelle Batin, 8-3.

PLU took the #3 doubles match, as Kylie Rademacher and Lauren Kearney moved past Siena Ginsburg (So., Bend, OR/Summit HS) and Hannah Andres (Sr., Sammamish, WA/Skyline HS), 8-3.

Dean added a win at #1 singles against Jeffries. Dean breezed through the first set, 6-1, but needed a tie-breaker to win the second set, 7-6 (7-4). Ginsburg won #3 singles for the Bearcats with back-to-back set scores of 6-4 versus Floyd.

Also winning for WU were Gjurasic at #5 singles and Andres at #6 singles. Gjurasic rolled to a 6-1, 6-2, victory over Kearney. Andres won a three-set match with Batin, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3.

Singles wins for the Lutes were recorded by Gochanour and Rademacher. Gochanour triumphed at #2 singles against Pashek, 6-4, 6-0. Rademacher outlasted Marr at #4 singles by winning a super tie-breaker instead of a third set. Rademacher won 6-2, 5-7, 10-5.

The Bearcats will return to action on Sunday, March 4, when they start Spring Break by taking on Whittier College in Whittier, California. Match time is scheduled for 2 p.m. (PDT).

Big Moment of the Match for Willamette

Alexis Gjurasic earned wins at #2 doubles and #5 singles.
In doubles, she teamed up with Sylvia Marr to defeat
Kristi Floyd and Michelle Batin, 8-3. In singles, Gjurasic
moved past Lauren Kearney, 6-1, 6-2.