Washington State University Athletics
Tuesday, March 3
Pullman, Wash.
1 p.m.
Washington State University
vs
No. 16 Pepperdine
Photo by: Shelly Hanks/WSU Photo Services
Cougars Host No. 16 Pepperdine Tuesday at Hollingbery
March 02, 2026 | Tennis
PULLMAN, Wash. (March 2, 2026) – Coming off a victory Saturday over No. 36 UC Santa Barbara, Washington State Women's Tennis returns home to face No. 10 Pepperdine, Tuesday, March 3 at 1 p.m. in Hollingbery Fieldhouse. The contest marks the third-straight for WSU against a nationally-ranked opponent.
SCOUTING PEPPERDINE: The Waves enter Tuesday's match with a 4-3 record and No. 16 national ranking to begin the 2026 seasons. Pepperdine has wins over #12 Texas, No. 2 Texas A&M and #6 USC. The Waves have three players currently nationally ranked in Anastasiia Grechkina (#10), Ziva Falkner (43) and Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (122). Their top doubles team of Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva is ranked No. 26 nationally. Pepperdine leads the all-time series, 3-0.
ALVAREZ SANDE OFF TO FAST START: Senior Eva Alvarez Sande is off to a 10-1 start in dual matches this season and is 15-6 overall. Her only setback came against No. 72 Erika Matsuda from Washington in two tiebreakers.
COUGARS UPSET NO. 36 UC SANTA BARBARA: In its last outing, Washington State posted a 4-3 upset over the Gauchos in Seattle. The win was the highest against a ranked opponent since defeating No. 35 Washington near the end of the 2022 season. The Cougars captured the opening doubles point then won at both 1 and 2 singles. UCSB captured singles wins at 3,5, and 6 to push the deciding match to No. 4 singles. WSU's Yura Nakagawa won the first 7-5 before Raphaella Leroux responded with a 6-1 win in the second, forcing a third to decide the match. Leading 4-3, Nakagawa held serve then broke Leroux for the fourth time in the set to win 6-3, clinching the victory for the Cougars.
COUGARS PICKED THIRD IN WCC PRESEASON POLL: WSU was picked third in the 2026 West Coast Conference Women's Tennis preseason poll, voted on by the conferences' 10 head coaches. Defending champion Pepperdine garnered the top spot in the preseason poll, receiving eight of the 10 first-place votes, to finish ahead of San Diego, which garnered the other two first-place votes. Washington State was third, followed by Loyola Marymount and Gonzaga to round out the top five. Cougar seniors Eva Alvarez Sande and Maxine Murphy were both named to the 2026 WCC Preseason Team, accounting for two of the six members.
NEXT UP: Following the Pepperdine match, the Cougars are next in action Friday, March 13 when they travel to Eugene to face Oregon at 11 a.m.
COUGARS TO PLAY IN WEST COAST CONFERENCE: For the 2025-26 seasons, the Cougars will be an affiliate member of the West Coast Conference. When conference realignment impacted the Pac-12 Conference following the 2023-24 season, Cougar Tennis was one of 10 WSU athletic programs to become WCC affiliate members. This season marks the second of two seasons in the WCC before the Pac-12 resumes full-membership status beginning with the 2026-27 season.
COUGARS SIGN JOLYNN GARRETT: In early January, Washington State University Tennis announced a new team member, signing 10-year-old JoLynn Garrett through Team IMPACT. JoLynn, who is navigating life with Williams syndrome, officially signed with the team. She will participate in many activities with Washington State Tennis, including games, practices, and other team events, over the next two years.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN: For the 2025-26 season, the Cougar roster consists of seniors Maxine Murphy and Eva Alvarez Sande, juniors Yura Nakagawa and Zali Morris, sophomores Chisato Kanemaki, Martina Puvill and Haylee Conway, and freshman Ava-Monet Sycamore.
HEAD COACH JOSH GRAETZ: Josh Graetz became the program's ninth head coach in the summer of 2025 after spending the previous two seasons as the Cougars' assistant coach. Graetz played a key role in WSU's run to the 2025 National Invitational Tournament title. Prior to WSU, Graetz served as the head coach for both men's and women's programs at Metropolitan State University in Denver, his alma mater.
FOLLOW LIVE: For all Cougar home tennis matches at Hollingbery Fieldhouse, live video streams of each match can be found HERE while live scoring is available HERE.
FOLLOW THE COUGARS: Keep up with Washington State tennis by following @WSUCougarTennis on Twitter, @wsucougartennis on Instagram, and Washington State Cougar Tennis on Facebook.
SCOUTING PEPPERDINE: The Waves enter Tuesday's match with a 4-3 record and No. 16 national ranking to begin the 2026 seasons. Pepperdine has wins over #12 Texas, No. 2 Texas A&M and #6 USC. The Waves have three players currently nationally ranked in Anastasiia Grechkina (#10), Ziva Falkner (43) and Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (122). Their top doubles team of Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva is ranked No. 26 nationally. Pepperdine leads the all-time series, 3-0.
ALVAREZ SANDE OFF TO FAST START: Senior Eva Alvarez Sande is off to a 10-1 start in dual matches this season and is 15-6 overall. Her only setback came against No. 72 Erika Matsuda from Washington in two tiebreakers.
COUGARS UPSET NO. 36 UC SANTA BARBARA: In its last outing, Washington State posted a 4-3 upset over the Gauchos in Seattle. The win was the highest against a ranked opponent since defeating No. 35 Washington near the end of the 2022 season. The Cougars captured the opening doubles point then won at both 1 and 2 singles. UCSB captured singles wins at 3,5, and 6 to push the deciding match to No. 4 singles. WSU's Yura Nakagawa won the first 7-5 before Raphaella Leroux responded with a 6-1 win in the second, forcing a third to decide the match. Leading 4-3, Nakagawa held serve then broke Leroux for the fourth time in the set to win 6-3, clinching the victory for the Cougars.
COUGARS PICKED THIRD IN WCC PRESEASON POLL: WSU was picked third in the 2026 West Coast Conference Women's Tennis preseason poll, voted on by the conferences' 10 head coaches. Defending champion Pepperdine garnered the top spot in the preseason poll, receiving eight of the 10 first-place votes, to finish ahead of San Diego, which garnered the other two first-place votes. Washington State was third, followed by Loyola Marymount and Gonzaga to round out the top five. Cougar seniors Eva Alvarez Sande and Maxine Murphy were both named to the 2026 WCC Preseason Team, accounting for two of the six members.
NEXT UP: Following the Pepperdine match, the Cougars are next in action Friday, March 13 when they travel to Eugene to face Oregon at 11 a.m.
COUGARS TO PLAY IN WEST COAST CONFERENCE: For the 2025-26 seasons, the Cougars will be an affiliate member of the West Coast Conference. When conference realignment impacted the Pac-12 Conference following the 2023-24 season, Cougar Tennis was one of 10 WSU athletic programs to become WCC affiliate members. This season marks the second of two seasons in the WCC before the Pac-12 resumes full-membership status beginning with the 2026-27 season.
COUGARS SIGN JOLYNN GARRETT: In early January, Washington State University Tennis announced a new team member, signing 10-year-old JoLynn Garrett through Team IMPACT. JoLynn, who is navigating life with Williams syndrome, officially signed with the team. She will participate in many activities with Washington State Tennis, including games, practices, and other team events, over the next two years.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN: For the 2025-26 season, the Cougar roster consists of seniors Maxine Murphy and Eva Alvarez Sande, juniors Yura Nakagawa and Zali Morris, sophomores Chisato Kanemaki, Martina Puvill and Haylee Conway, and freshman Ava-Monet Sycamore.
HEAD COACH JOSH GRAETZ: Josh Graetz became the program's ninth head coach in the summer of 2025 after spending the previous two seasons as the Cougars' assistant coach. Graetz played a key role in WSU's run to the 2025 National Invitational Tournament title. Prior to WSU, Graetz served as the head coach for both men's and women's programs at Metropolitan State University in Denver, his alma mater.
FOLLOW LIVE: For all Cougar home tennis matches at Hollingbery Fieldhouse, live video streams of each match can be found HERE while live scoring is available HERE.
FOLLOW THE COUGARS: Keep up with Washington State tennis by following @WSUCougarTennis on Twitter, @wsucougartennis on Instagram, and Washington State Cougar Tennis on Facebook.
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