SALT LAKE CITY – Washington State Tennis' comeback fell a match shy as the No. 28 Cougars' dropped a 4-3 decision to Utah Friday afternoon at the Eccles Tennis Center.
 
With the loss the Cougars fall to 13-3 on the season, 0-1 in Pac-12 play, while Utah improves to 8-2, 1-0.
 
With the match tied a 3-3, the deciding point came down to No. 2 singles where WSU's Hikaru Sato and Utah's Madison Tattini were in a third set. After fighting back from 5-4 down in the third, Sato held a 6-5 lead in the tiebreaker but could not close it out as Tattini saved a match point before prevailing 8-6 in the breaker, giving Utah the 4-3 victory.
 
"I'm proud of the way Hikaru handled herself in the final set with the match on the line," said WSU Head Coach Lisa Hart. "Unfortunately, the result did not go our way but we will get back to work tomorrow to improve."
 
After Utah captured the opening doubles point, the Cougars tied the match when Melisa Ates posted a 6-1, 7-6 win at No. 6. Utah's Leah Heimuli followed with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Aneta Miksovska at No. 5 before Tiffany Mylonas evened the match at 2-2 with a 6-4, 7-6 win over Emily Dush at No. 3.
 
WSU freshman Savanna Ly-Nguyen saw her seven-match winning streak snapped as Whitney Hekking posted a 7-6, 6-2 win at No. 4. Michaela Bayerlova, ranked No. 38 nationally, rallied from a set down to defeat Utah's Brianna Chisholm 7-6, 2-6, 6-3 at No. 1, setting the stage for No. 2 singles.
 
In doubles play to start the match, Utah captured wins at No. 1 and 3 to clinch the opening point.
 
The Cougars return to action Sunday when the travel to Boulder to face Colorado. Match time is set for 9 a.m. PT.
 
WASHINGTON STATE TENNIS
Utah 4 def. No. 28 Washington State 3
March 8, 2019
Eccles Tennis Center
Salt Lake City, Utah
 
DOUBLES

1. Chisholm/Tattini (UTAH) def. No. 71 Mylonas/Sato (WSU), 6-3
2. Lee/Ates (WSU) def. Hekking/Heimuli (UTAH), 6-2
3. Dush/Lamoreaux (UTAH) def. Knezevic/Miksovska (WSU), 6-4

Order of Finish: 2,1,3
 
SINGLES

1. No. 38 Michaela Bayerlova (WSU) def. Brianna Chisholm (UTAH), 7-6, 2-6, 6-3
2. Madison Tattini (UTAH) def. Hikaru Sato (WSU), 2-6, 6-3, 7-6
3. Tiffany Mylonas (WSU) def. Emily Dush (UTAH), 6-4, 7-6
4. Whitney Hekking (UTAH) def. Savanna Ly-Nguyen (WSU), 7-6, 6-2
5. Leah Heimuli (UTAH) def. Aneta Miksovska (WSU), 6-4, 6-2
6. Melisa Ates (WSU) def. Anya Lamoreaux (UTAH), 6-1, 7-6

Order of Finish: 6,5,3,4,1,2