Virginia Tech Hokies women’s tennis lost a close 4-3 match to the No. 23-ranked California Golden Bears on April 5.
The match was significant for Virginia Tech as they were seeking their second Atlantic Coast Conference win of the season. The Hokies began strongly, sweeping all three doubles matches. Freshmen Elizaveta Castillo and Alston Myatt earned their first doubles victory with a 6-4 result, while Arina Gamretkaia and Özlem Uslu, ranked No. 45 in doubles, secured another point with a matching score. Mila Mulready and Linda Ziets-Segura completed the sweep after coming from behind to win their set 7-5.
In singles play, Cal quickly tied the overall score when Myatt retired after her first set. The Golden Bears then took a lead as Uslu lost to Berta Passola Folch in straight sets. Ziets-Segura brought Virginia Tech level again by winning her singles match against Anya Murthy in two tight sets.
Gamretkaia gave the Hokies an advantage by defeating Mao Mushika for her first ranked singles win of the season in three sets. However, Cal rallied back: Mulready dropped her deciding third set and Castillo fell short after forcing a tiebreaker in her second set, allowing Cal to clinch the team victory.
Looking ahead, Virginia Tech will return home for its final regular-season dual matches against No. 10 North Carolina State on Friday, April 10 at 3 p.m., followed by No. 68 Wake Forest on Sunday, April 12 at 1 p.m.
