Dafos’ win in No. 4 singles boosts SBCC past Fullerton, 5-4

SBCC erased a 4-3 deficit with a pair of three-set victories on Tuesday to slip past Fullerton 5-4 in a Southern Cal Regional women's tennis playoff opener at Fullerton.

The No. 5 Vaqueros (17-3) won their third straight and seventh in eight matches. They got revenge on the No. 4 Hornets (12-8), who had beaten them 6-3 on March 22.

Anya Nicolaides rallied past Janet Shiau at No. 3 singles, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1. Victoria Dafos clinched the quarterfinal win with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 decision over Ashley Castro at No. 4.

"We started with doubles and our only win came at No. 2," said coach Christina Klein. "Anya and Victoria led 7-6, dropped a game, then won the last two to win 9-7."

Jule Lauinger lost to Savanna Schreiner in straight sets when the Vaqueros played Fullerton three weeks ago. She turned it around on Tuesday with a 6-3, 6-2 victory at No. 5 singles. Joica Buyse beat Alexus Lombera more convincingly (6-3, 6-1) than last time, despite playing with a sore shoulder.

Vaquero women's tennis celebrates their 5-4 playoff win at Fullerton. We're 17-3 on the year and advance to the Regional semifinals next Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/3m5yxlHOfy

— SBCCVaqueros (@SBCCVaqueros) April 10, 2019

"The girls played with tenacity and wanted to win," said Klein, who guided the Vaqueros to a perfect 14-0 WSC record and their first conference title since 2001. "Since we lost to them last time, they really wanted to win."

The Vaqueros will take on top-seeded and unbeaten Orange Coast (19-0) on Tuesday, April 16 in Costa Mesa at 2 p.m. OCC def. No. 8 Grossmont on Tuesday, 5-0. The Pirates have 13 shutouts this year, including a 9-0 win over the Vaqueros on March 8.

Doubles
1. Suh/Lombera, FC, def. Buyse/Buyse 8-2
2. Nicolaides/Dafos, SBCC, def. Castro/Schreiner 9-7
3. Shiau/La, FC, def. Lauinger/Julia Jakobsen 8-4
   Order of finish: 1, 3, 2

Singles
1. Yu Seung Suh, FC, def. Jamaica Buyse 6-0, 6-0
2. Joica Buyse, SBCC, def. Alexus Lombera 6-3, 6-1
3. Anya Nicolaides, SBCC, def. Janet Shiau 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
4. Victoria Dafos, SBCC, def. Ashley Castro 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
5. Jule Lauinger, SBCC, def. Savanna Schreiner 6-3, 6-2
6. Kim La, FC, def. Maddie Mitchell 6-2, 6-3
   Order of finish: 1, 5, 2, 6, 3, 4