The No. 12 Bruins (7-1) made it into the quarterfinals of the ITA National Tennis Indoor Championships in Madison, Wisc. this past weekend before being ousted by Pac-10 rival No. 2 Cal.
But the Bruins were able to leave the Indoors on a high note by upsetting No. 4 Florida in the quarterfinals consolation match, 4-1.
UCLA began the championships with their sixth consecutive win, a 4-3 upset against No. 6 Miami in the first round. The match was highlighted by the strong doubles play of senior Yasmin Schnack and junior Andrea Remynse, as they defeated the No. 3 doubles pair in the country, Miami’s Gabriela Mejia and Laura Vallverdu.
Miami was UCLA’s first top 25 opponent this season. The Bruins earned a spot in the quarterfinals with the win, despite being unseeded in the tournament.
The Bruins suffered a close loss to the Cal Bears (6-1) in the very next round, losing 3-4. Though the Bears had a strong lineup, with three singles players ranked in the top 100, unranked junior Noelle Hickey defeated Cal’s Marina Cossou, ranked No. 10 in the country.
UCLA finished up the NTIC with a convincing victory over the Gators (7-2). Schnack, the nation’s No. 5 singles player, defeated No. 15 Lauren Embree in straight sets, dropping only two games in a 6-0, 6-2 rout. Hickey posted another win against a ranked opponent, a 6-2, 6-3 victory over No. 81 Marrit Boonstra.
The Bears eventually lost to No. 3 Northwestern in the semifinals of the NTIC. Northwestern went on to win the championships with a 4-2 win over North Carolina, the other unseeded team that had advanced to the quarterfinals.
Compiled by Jason Wang, Bruin Sports contributor.