SPOKANE, Wash. - The Eagles would take the No. 1 and No. 2 singles, but it would not be enough against the Zags. Eastern Washington (1-2) traveled to Spokane to take on Gonzaga (2-0), but would fall 5-2. 

"There are a lot of great things to pull from and probably the best match we've played as a team all season long, even though we came out with a loss," head coach Dustin Hinson said. "Everyone just competed really well. They had a desire to compete from start to finish and try to find a way to win."

In the doubles No. 2 position, Leandra Nizetic and Sara Vasic would compete together for the first time this season. The No. 1 position would see Anait Arutiunian/Kenzington Mann compete together for the second time this season. The two teams would be unable to secure a win in their match ups, as the Zags would clinch the doubles point.

The junior Anait Arutiunian would make her second appearance in the No. 1 singles position. Arutiunian would struggle to find her footing in the first marth, but would be able to push Rose Hayes in the second set. Arutiunian would have the lead for most of the second set, and would be able to pull through for the 6-4 second set victory. Arutiunian would have the early lead in the tiebreaker, but Hayes would storm back to tie it 6-6. Arutiunian would be able to find her groove and win four straight and win the tiebreaker 10-6. The win would be Arutiunian's first dual-match win of the season, and her third dual-match win of her career. 

From the No. 2 position, the junior Nizetic would show some grit in her first set 6-4 win, and continue the momentum in the 6-3 second set win to secure the dual-match victory over Norhan Hesham. Nizetic moves to 2-1 in dual-matches this season. 

"I'm super happy for the No.1 and No.2 singles matches with Anait and Lea. Anait had to come back from a set down to pull it out in a tiebreaker. Lea was really dominant in straight sets and played great. She's playing really well and just super excited for those wins," Hinson said.

In her second dual-match of the season, freshman Zoe Pradel would make her No. 4 singles debut. Pradel's first set would go back and forth, but Ella Nielsen would be able to steal the first set 7-5. In the second, Pradel would start fast and take the early 4-2, and would win the set 6-3. Pradel would have a back and forth tiebreaker, but would be unable to win it and fall 10-7. 

The other freshman Olivia Marais in the No. 6 singles position would struggle in her first set and fall 6-2. Marais would battle back in the second set, but would fall in the tiebreaker. 

"Even the ones that didn't get wins, excited with the energy that they brought, and I just think everyone's playing for each other. They're playing for more than just themselves, which is what you love to see. A lot of great team cohesion so far this year, which is what we've really been focusing on a lot off the court," Hinson said. "It is just helping our performance on the court and so I'm excited for what's to come. We'll get a kind of rest next weekend and then be back at it. We are excited to keep training hard and find new ways to get better."

Up Next
EWU will have a week off before traveling down to Moscow to take on BYU Saturday, Feb. 1 at 10 am.

2025 Eastern Washington Women's Tennis
January 19, 2025
Gonzaga def. Eastern Washington 5-2
Spokane, Wash.

DOUBLES
No. 1 Emily Robertson/Safien Boulonois (GU) def. Anait Arutiunian/Kenzington Mann (EWU) 6-2
No. 2 Rose Hayes /Lia Espinal (GU) def. Leandra Nizetic /Sara Vasic (EWU) 6-2 
No. 3 Norhan Hesham/Brooke Bittner (GU) def. Zoe Pradel/Olivia Marais (EWU) (DNF)

Order of Finish: 1,2 

SINGLES
No. 1 Anait Arutiunian (EWU) def. Rose Hayes (GU) 3-6, 6-4, (10-6)
No. 2 Leandra Nizetic (EWU) def. Safien Boulonoi (GU) 6-4, 6-3
No. 3 Norhan Hesham (GU) def. Kenzington Mann (EWU) 6-1, 6-3
No. 4 Ella Nielsen (GU) def. Zoe Pradel (EWU) 7-5, 3-6, (10-7)
No.5 Brooke Bittner (GU) def. Sara Vasic (EWU) 6-2, 6-2
No.6 Lia Espinal (GU) def. Olivia Marais (EWU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-1)

Order of Finish: 3,5,2,6,4,1
 

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ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.

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