LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV women's tennis team tasted defeat at home for the first time this season in heartbreaking fashion, 4-3, at the hands of 42^nd-ranked San Diego Saturday at the Fertitta Tennis Complex.
 
The Rebels dropped to 9-5 overall and 7-1 in Las Vegas while the Toreros of the West Coast Conference improved to 7-2 with their fifth consecutive victory.
 
USD won a close doubles session to take a 1-0 lead but UNLV stormed back in singles, taking the first set on five of six courts. The Rebels got on the board when senior star Aiwen Zhu, ranked 91^st, fought off Solymar Colling, ranked 93^rd, 7-5, 6-3, at the top of the lineup.
 
The visitors were eventually able to steal the road win, however, by coming back to take three-setters on two different courts, including clinching it when Gemma Garcia overcame a 5-2 final-set deficit to reach a tiebreaker and defeat En-Pei Huang, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, at No. 3.
 
REBEL OF THE MATCH: Izumi Asano and teammate Anna Bogoslavets were winning their doubles match 5-4 on court three when it was halted and then Asano posted a 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win over Daniela Morales at the second singles spot.
 
NET NOTES: Zhu's victory moved her into a tie with Anna Maskaljun (2008-11) for sixth place on UNLV's career singles list with 94 wins … Huang saw her nine-match winning streak snapped … Huang and Zhu, ranked 49^th in doubles, saw their eight-match winning streak come to an end.
 
QUOTABLE: "Tough match today. It came down to a third-set tiebreaker that could have gone either way."
-UNLV Head Coach Kevin Cory
 
NEXT FOR THE REBELS: UNLV will host No. 10 Ohio State Wednesday starting with doubles play at 10:30 a.m. PT. Admission is free of charge.
 
Women's Tennis Match Results
#42 SAN DIEGO 4, UNLV 3
March 9, 2019, at Las Vegas, NV
(Fertitta Tennis Complex)
 
 Singles competition 
1. #91 Aiwen Zhu (UNLV) def. #93 Solymar Colling (USD) 7-5, 6-3
2. Izumi Asano (UNLV) def. Daniela Morales (USD) 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
3. Gemma Garcia (USD) def. En-Pei Huang (UNLV) 3-6, 6-3, 7-6
4. Anna Bogoslavets (UNLV) def. Kati Kukaras (USD) 6-0, 7-6
5. Maria-Paula Torres (USD) def. Connie Li (UNLV) 2-6, 6-0, 6-2
6. Maria Tyrina (USD) def. Alex Kalachova (UNLV) 6-2, 6-4
 
 Doubles competition 
1. Solymar Colling/Maria-Paula Torres (USD) def. #49 En-Pei Huang/Aiwen Zhu (UNLV) 6-4
2. Maria Tyrina/Daniela Morales (USD) def. Samantha Li/Alex Kalachova (UNLV) 6-2
3. Anna Bogoslavets/Izumi Asano (UNLV) vs. Gemma Garcia/Kati Kukaras (USD) 5-4, unfinished
 
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (6,1,5,2,3,4)