LOS ANGELES – No. 38/26 Stanford stormed past No. 34/32 USC 6-1 on Saturday afternoon, coming away with a split of its SoCal road swing.
Stanford (11-3, 7-2 Pac-12) collected its fourth win over a ranked opponent this season and snapped its rare three-match losing streak, representing the first time the Cardinal suffered three setbacks in a row since 1981.
The Cardinal, which has won 45 of its last 47 regular-season Pac-12 matches, also extended its winning streak over USC (11-8, 5-4 Pac-12) to seven straight dating back to 2015.
Leading 1-0 after doubles, Stanford received dominant straight-set wins from Sara Choy (6-2, 6-0) and Emma Higuchi (6-1, 6-3) to close in on the clincher.
Angelica Blake made it official, prevailing 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 at the No. 2 spot to secure the match for the Cardinal, which was playing its third consecutive contest without singles lineup regular Ana Geller.
Stanford won two of the final three remaining matches, including India Houghton grinding out a three-setter in her Pac-12 debut and second appearance of the season overall.
Next up for the Cardinal is a matchup against Hawai'i on Tuesday, April 13 at 2 p.m.
No. 38/26 Stanford 6, No. 34/32 USC 1
DOUBLES
1) Gordon/Niluka Madurawe (STAN) d. Cayetano/Angela Kulikov (USC) 6-2
2) Ewing/McKee (USC) led Arbuthnott/Blake (STAN) 6-5, susp.
3) Choy/Higuchi (STAN) d. Naomi Cheong/Dvorak (USC) 7-5
Order of Finish: 1, 3
SINGLES
1) Salma Ewing (USC) d. No. 48 Michaela Gordon (STAN) 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (3)
2) Angelica Blake (STAN) d. No. 123 Eryn Cayetano (USC) 6-3, 2-6, 6-4
3) Emily Arbuthnott (STAN) d. Danielle Wilson (USC) 5-7, 7-6 (4), 1-0 (3)
4) Sara Choy (STAN) d. Summer Dvorak (USC) 6-2, 6-0
5) Emma Higuchi (STAN) d. Constance Branstine (USC) 6-1, 6-3
6) India Houghton (STAN) d. Clare McKee (USC) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
Order of Finish: 4, 5, 2, 1, 3, 6