BERKELEY, Calif. - No. 11 Stanford dropped a 5-2 decision to No. 4 California on Saturday afternoon in Berkeley in the final match of the regular season for both teams.
Playing short-handed with 20th-ranked Caroline Doyle out of the singles lineup due to injury, the Cardinal (15-5, 7-3 Pac-12) had its six-match winning streak halted while the Golden Bears (19-3, 9-1 Pac-12) earned a second-place finish in conference play.
Stanford, which lost to California for only the fourth time in the last 13 matches, remains in good shape for the postseason after finishing fourth in the Pac-12 while being ranked between No. 7-13 in the country throughout the season. The Cardinal’s five losses are its most since a 19-5 finish in 2009.
California, which also defeated Stanford 4-3 at Taube Family Tennis Stadium on March 1 in the non-counting Pac-12 match, locked up the doubles point for a 1-0 lead with wins at Nos. 1 and 2.
The Golden Bears quickly made it 3-0 with a pair of singles wins at the bottom of the lineup. Lynn Chi booked a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Lindsey Kostas, playing her first career match at No. 5, before Cecilia Estlander notched a 6-0, 6-1 win over Paulette Wolak, making her first career dual match appearance overall.
Denise Starr followed with the clincher, a 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Taylor Davidson at the No. 2 position.
Stanford’s points came from Carol Zhao, who beat Klara Fabikova 7-5, 6-2 at the No. 1 spot, and Ellen Tsay, who breezed past Karla Popovic 6-2, 6-4 on court five.
Stanford shifts its focus to individual play, competing at the Pac-12 Championships next weekend in Ojai, Calif.
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No. 4 California 5, No. 11 Stanford 2
DOUBLES
1) No. 10 Fabikova/Susanyi (CAL) d. No. 2 Davidson/Zhao (STAN) 8-3
2) Chi/Starr (CAL) d. No. 14 Caroline Doyle/Tsay (STAN) 8-4
3) Hardebeck/Wolak (STAN) vs. Hoang/Popovic (CAL) abandoned
Order of Finish: 1, 2
DOUBLES
1) No. 2 Carol Zhao (STAN) d. No. 24 Klara Fabikova (CAL) 7-5, 6-2
2) No. 48 Denise Starr (CAL) d. No. 18 Taylor Davidson (STAN) 6-3, 6-4
3) No. 40 Zsofi Susanyi (CAL) d. No. 96 Krista Hardebeck (STAN) 6-2, 6-2
4) No. 112 Ellen Tsay (STAN) d. No. 89 Karla Popovic (CAL) 6-2, 6-4
5) No. 56 Lynn Chi (CAL) d. Lindsey Kostas (STAN) 6-1, 6-0
6) Cecilia Estlander (CAL) d. Paulette Wolak (STAN) 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 2, 3, 4, 1