WOMEN'S TENNIS: The Utes will open their 2010 dual match season with two road matches this weekend against Washington State (2-0) and 24th-ranked Washington (0-0). The Utes will face the Cougars on Saturday, Jan. 23, in Pullman, Wash., followed by a match with the Huskies on Sunday, Jan. 24, in Seattle. Both matches are slated to begin at 11 am MT.
"We're really excited to start the dual match season," said Utah head coach Mat Iandolo. "Especially after having very good results against top 30-ranked teams this past weekend."
Last year the Utes opened the dual match season at home against the WSU and UW, upsetting the then 44th-ranked Cougars 5-2 and falling 7-0 to the 38th-ranked Huskies.
The upset by Utah snapped a five-match losing streak to WSU. Sophomore Anastasia Putilina clinched the match for the Utes from the No. 1 singles position after helping secure the doubles point with fellow sophomore Lisa Johnson from the No. 1 doubles spot.
Senior Erin Monson and former Ute Leigh Walsh won the doubles point for Utah from the No. 3 position. Monson and Walsh also had singles wins from the No. 3 and No. 5 spots, respectively.
Sophomore Lexi Provancha also contributed to the upset with a singles win from the No. 6 position.
Utah is coming off a successful showing at the University of Virginia Winter Invitational, where they amassed 11 wins against opponents from 18th-ranked UNC, 26th-ranked Virginia and 29th-ranked LSU.
The Cougars are 2-0 after starting off their dual match seasons with wins against Lewis-Clark State and Idaho.
The Huskies are coming off an appearance at the Michigan Invitational this past weekend.