No. 7 UCLA (23-5) wrapped up its 2015 season with a strong showing in the NCAA team and individual singles and doubles tournament.
Senior Robin Anderson, the No. 1 seed, advanced to the quarterfinal of the singles draw before falling to University of Miami’s Stephanie Wagner. After taking the first set, Anderson was unable to finish off her opponent and lost in three tightly contested sets.
Anderson’s doubles partner, sophomore Jennifer Brady, upset No. 3-seeded Brooke Austin of Florida in the first round, but was unable to sustain her level of play in the third round against defending champion Danielle Collins of Virginia.
In doubles, Brady and Anderson took the No. 1 seed and defending champions Maya Jansen and Erin Routliffe of Alabama to three sets, but the eventual champions overwhelmed the Bruins and eventually pulled away from their opponents in the Round of 16 matchup.
The No. 3-seeded team of Catherine Harrison and Kyle McPhillips entered the tournament 26-6 for the year. However, the juniors crashed out in the first round to Vanderbilt’s unseeded duo of Ashleigh Antal and Astra Sharma, who provided key doubles and singles wins against UCLA in the team final Tuesday night.
McPhillips also failed to make it out of the first round of the singles tournament, losing in straight sets to eventual semifinalist, Florida’s Josie Kuhlman.
Harrison, entering the tournament with a 28-8 singles record, struggled to gain momentum in her second round match, winning just five games in a straight sets loss.
Senior Chanelle Van Nguyen earned All-American honors with her second quarterfinal finish, upsetting No. 6 Julia Elbaba of Virginia and polishing off hometown favorite Baylor’s Ema Burgic in straight sets.
Against conference foe Stanford’s Carol Zhao, who gave up only six games over three rounds, Van Nguyen pushed the No. 2 seed in every rally. But the Cardinal earned the big points and came away with a 6-4, 7-5 win in the quarterfinals en route to a runner-up finish.
The Bruins end an injury-riddled season with multiple individual titles and a runner-up finish in the NCAA team tournament. With six returning players, including McPhillips and Harrison, UCLA puts itself in position to have another successful season.
Compiled by Tuanh Dam, Bruin Sports contributor.
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