But against the initial slate of highly ranked conference opponents, the Cal baseball team’s momentum started to slow to a stuttering halt. The Bears dropped two out of three to No. 11 UCLA. They dropped two out of three to USC. With postseason aspirations hanging in the balance of the next stretch run of games, the Bears reeled off an eight-game losing streak to shift the season permanently into a phase of development instead one of competition.

In Cal’s 7-3 loss to Stanford on Sunday, one saw the signs of the positive changes stemming from the Bears’ emphasis on development in the latter half of the season. Save for catcher Andrew Knapp, who is likely to depart for the MLB draft, everyone in the starting lineup from the Cardinal contest will return to Evans Diamond next year.

Perhaps the most promising discovery of the 2013 season was freshman center fielder Devon Pearson. Pearson, hailing from Carmel, Calif., was also a standout athlete in both football and basketball at Carmel High School. He chose to follow baseball to Cal, and the decision paid off after a surprisingly successful freshman campaign. Pearson finished second on the club with a .305 average and tacked on 19 walks and seven stolen bases for good measure. His defense in center field stood among the best in the conference, combining elite speed with a powerful throwing arm to aid Cal pitchers all year.

Encouraging steps forward from veterans Chris Paul, Brendan Farney and Devon Rodriguez on the offensive side of the game also served to bolster optimism for future seasons.

Paul tied Knapp for the team lead in home runs with eight and finished second on the squad with a .399 slugging percentage. Farney bounced back from a dismal freshman season by posting a .288 average and contributing stellar defense at a middle infield position. Rodriguez got off to a blistering start to the season, sporting higher than a .350 average for a portion of the nonconference schedule. But a lingering elbow injury derailed his strong start, and Rodriguez’s average dipped to .272 by season’s end. Rodriguez should bounce back strong and sit in the middle of the Bears’ lineup for the entirety of 2014.

And a strong effort from starting pitcher Dylan Nelson on Sunday showed that Cal’s greatest weakness this season — a weak starting rotation — could easily transition into a strength when next spring rolls around.

After a season full of ups and downs, Esquer and the Bears will likely leave the season content with what remains on their plate for next year.

Michael Rosen covers baseball. Contact him at mrosen@dailycal.org. Follow him on Twitter @michaelrosen3.

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On Feb. 8, when Cal was regarded as one of the best teams in the nation, it fell to upstart Kentucky, 3-1, in extra innings in the opening game of the season. The loss was seen as nothing more than an anomaly at the time, and the Bears still seemed destined for the Women’s College World Series.

But the Bears (38-19) fell short of winning the Michigan Regional this past weekend, while the hometown Wolverines (48-10) secured the trophy with relative ease.

After overpowering Central Michigan (33-20) 8-1 on Friday, the Bears were blanked by Michigan 5-0 the next day. Cal responded with a 6-0 thrashing of Valparaiso (35-27), a game that saw Henderson (32-11) throw her fourth career no hitter, but ultimately couldn’t solve Michigan pitcher Sara Driesenga in the final game of the regional in a 3-1 loss.

On Friday afternoon, the Cal offense came out firing on all cylinders against Central Michigan pitcher Kara Dornbos. Cal went yard four times in the 8-1 blowout while Henderson, only in her second full game back from her left-knee injury, dominated the CMU lineup from start to finish.

Henderson’s sister, Danielle Henderson, accounted for two of the Bears’ four home runs. The other two long balls came off of the bats of junior Victoria Jones and senior Lindsey Ziegenhirt.

The Bears ran into a roadblock on Saturday, though, when they were shut down by Driesenga. Both Henderson and freshman pitcher Nisa Ontiveros kept pace with Driesenga, but defensive miscues cost the Bears three unearned runs.

After the loss, Cal found itself on the loser’s side of the bracket. Facing Valparaiso for the chance to rematch Michigan in the final round, Henderson was at her best.

For the fourth time in her career, the All-American pitched a no-hitter. Jones led the offensive attack for Cal with two RBIs, and freshman Khala Taylor went three-for-five off of Valparaiso pitcher Sierra Pico (11-10).

Heading into the final matchup with Michigan, the Bears would have had to defeat the Wolverines twice in order to move on to the Super Regional Round next weekend — Michigan, on the other hand, only had to defeat Cal once to advance.

Henderson kept her offense within striking range, only giving up three runs to the vaunted Michigan offense. However, Cal’s offense was stymied — its only run coming off of a home run by shortstop Cheyenne Cordes.

Down to their last three outs and trailing 3-1, the Bears found themselves with the tying run on first base and the winning run at the plate. Up at the plate, Cordes quickly found herself in a full count. With two outs, a double would most likely score both runners and send the game into extra innings. Cordes turned on the payoff pitch and launched it into deep right-center field.

But needing 375 feet to clear the wall for the walk-off home run, Cordes only got enough on the ball for it to travel 370 feet.

It fell harmlessly into the mitt of Michigan outfielder Nicole Sappingfield, ending Cal’s season.

Sean Wagner-McGough covers softball. Contact him at swagnermcgough@dailycal.org. Follow him on Twitter @seanjwagner.

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The Bears ended their NCAA team championship run the same way they ended it last year — with a Sweet 16 loss to Virginia.

At the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex in Urbana, Ill., the No. 3 Cavaliers swiftly swept Cal, 4-0, to advance to the semifinals of the NCAA tournament. While the Bears completed their season on Thursday with a respectable 16-10 record, the Virginia squad extended their perfect season record to 27-0.

The match was called once the Cavs clinched their fourth and final point. The Bears had trouble keeping up with the physicality of the Virginia squad and ultimately could not post even one point on the scoreboard.

“Virginia showed us today why they are an undefeated team,” said Cal coach Peter Wright.

However, the Cal team that played against Virginia last year was not the same team that battled the Cavs this past week.

Last season, Cal barely had a chance against the aggressive Virginia team. The Cavs rapidly took the Bears down in doubles after winning 8-3 on the first and third courts. They then moved on into the singles round, taking the first-set lead across all six courts until they stifled the Bears on courts two, three and five.

But this year, despite finishing the match at 4-0, No. 18 Cal displayed some resistance both in the doubles and singles rounds.

The No. 21 Virginia duo of Alex Domijan and Mitchell Frank took down Cal’s Mads Engsted and Ben McLachlan on court No. 2, 8-5, to start off the day in doubles. But the Cal pair of Gregory Bayane and Chase Melton conquered its Cavalier counterpart on court No. 3, 8-6, to tie the doubles round.

The Cavs ultimately took the first point once Virginia’s Jarmere Jenkins and Mac Styslinger, the No. 4 doubles team in the nation, won 8-4 on the top court.

“At No. 3, we played really well, and we were close at No. 1 and 2 all the way through,” Wright said. “The doubles point has been one of the biggest parts of the match for us, so losing it was definitely a challenge.”

Last year, the Cavaliers utterly dominated the Bears in singles, only yielding one set to Cal.

This year, the Virginia team similarly took down three Bears in singles to clinch the match. Cal senior co-captain Riki McLachlan — who returned from suffering a severe knee injury in

February — fell to Julen Uriguen on court No. 6 to yield Virginia’s second point. Konigsfeldt and Bayane later followed, dropping two sets each to hand the Cavs the 4-0 win.

But in this year’s matchup, freshman Engsted nabbed his first set and was up a break in his second set, 3-1, before the match was called. On the top court, No. 3 Jenkins took down Ben McLachlan in the first set, but McLachlan fired back to take the second set.

“The score is a testament to how strong that Virginia team is,” Wright said. “But our guys played with a lot of heart today, and I’m just so proud of the guys and how they competed.”

Janice Chua covers men’s tennis. Contact her at jchua@dailycal.org.

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In the end, that’s where No. 8 Cal came against No. 1 Florida in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. The Bears nearly pulled the upset in a much more competitive match than the final 4-2 score would suggest.

But before that match, Cal had to battle against No. 9 Alabama on Friday in the Sweet 16. That match was also close — two singles matches went into third sets and two more featured tie-breaker sets.

Since April, Cal has struggled with its doubles play, and it was no different against Alabama. The Crimson Tide soon roared to a 1-0 lead, thanks to 8-5 wins on courts No. 1 and No. 3 in doubles.

“We started first thing in the morning, and we looked a little slow,” said Cal coach Amanda Augustus.

But in singles, Cal shrugged off the rust and ripped off four straight wins to claim a 4-1 victory and a spot in the Elite Eight.

Fast forward to Sunday against the Gators, and the story started out in almost the same fashion. Cal lost the doubles point but looked to rebound in singles against the top squad in the country.

Zsofi Susanyi began the Bears’ potential comeback. She flew to a 6-1, 6-1 victory against Florida’s Alexandra Cercone on court No. 3 to even the match.

Meanwhile, junior Anett Schutting had the tough task of facing the No. 1 player in the country, Lauren Embree. Schutting, the No. 8 player herself, could not hold off Embree and fell, 6-2, 6-0 to make the match score 2-1.

On court No. 4, freshman Lynn Chi was engaged with Brianna Morgan, a quick, aggressive player much like herself. Morgan blanked Chi in the first set, 6-0, but Chi began a remarkable turnaround, winning the second set 6-2 and pushing the match to a third set.

“Usually, (Lynn Chi) is pretty aggressive with her opponent, and I think this girl came out and hit the ball at her,” Augustus said. “I think Lynn handled it well, and she settled down and got back to work.”

While Chi attempted to make a comeback, senior Tayler Davis and freshman Klara Fabikova each finished their matches — but with opposite results. While Davis lost 6-1, 6-4, Fabikova pounded her opponent to a 7-5, 6-4 victory. With the match now at 3-2, the result came down to Chi and senior Annie Goransson’s matches.

Florida just needed one more victory to clinch the match, and Goransson was down 5-2 in her second set on the No. 6 court. It would take a small miracle for Cal to come back.

It was a miracle that Cal would not get. Caroline Hitimana attacked Goransson at the net to finally put the match away for the Gators, robbing Chi of her chance at a comeback. The final score was 4-2.

With that, Cal’s season as a team ended, leaving the Bears to think about what could have been.

“Lynn was about to win her match,” Augustus said. “It might have made the difference for one of the seniors — I don’t know.”

Riley McAtee covers women’s tennis. Contact him at rmcatee@dailycal.org

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Just like last May, the Bears had just clinched their NCAA round-of-32 match to secure their position in the Sweet 16 rankings. The Cal squad topped both Florida State and Denver this past weekend in 4-1 wins to secure its Sweet 16 position for the third straight year.

And coincidentally, just like last May, the Bears will attempt to overcome No. 3 Virginia to extend their run at the NCAA team championships.

This Thursday at 10 a.m., Cal (16-9) will battle the second-seeded Cavaliers for the second consecutive year at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex in Urbana, Ill.

If last year was any indication of how the No. 18 Bears will do against the Cavaliers, this match may very well be the Bears’ last.

In 2012, the nationally elite Virginia team swiftly swept Cal in a 4-0 domination to advance to the semifinals of the NCAAs. The Cavaliers only allowed the Bears a one-set win in singles before they stifled the Cal team in the doubles round and across all six courts in singles.

If last year’s matchup isn’t enough of an indication, the Cavs are riding on a winning streak that hasn’t been broken since the start of their season. The Virginia team boasts an impressive

26-0 season record so far this year after recently dominating Minnesota and Farleigh Dickinson last weekend in rapid 4-0 sweeps.

Virginia’s pristine season record is reinforced by the depth of the Cavalier squad. Their doubles and singles lineup teem with ranked players up and down the courts, spearheaded by No. 3 Jarmere Jenkins and No. 2 Alex Domijan in singles. The team boasts four other nationally ranked singles players along with three ranked doubles pairs. The first and last time the Cavaliers dropped the doubles point was back in February, when Virginia still rallied to take home a 4-3 win against Ohio State.

Although the strength of the individual players on the Virginia squad has not changed, one major difference between this year and last year is Cal’s familiarity with the Cavalier team. In 2012, the Bears battled Virginia for the first time in program history.

This year, according to Cal coach Peter Wright, Cal will have a slight edge just by the fact that the Bears will not be blindsided by the Cavaliers’ strength on the court.

“We’ve played Virginia in the Sweet 16 last year, so we know what to expect,” Wright said. “They’re a strong team, but we’re a bunch of believers, and we start preparing tonight for how we’re going to play them.”

The Bears recognize that they will certainly be the underdog in their Sweet-16 matchup. But having won eight of their last nine matches, the Bears will strive to carry their momentum into one of their biggest matches of the year.

“I think they’re probably the best team in the country, being undefeated this whole season,” said senior co-captain Christoffer Konigsfeldt. “But I think we’re peaking more now than we have been the whole season, so hopefully, we can shake them.”

Janice Chua covers men’s tennis. Contact her at jchua@dailycal.org.

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A flattering analogy, but it only paints half the picture of what Sir Alex meant to soccer. With 49 titles under his belt in 39 years as manager, Ferguson indelibly shaped Manchester United, the English Premier League and the global sport of soccer.

Since his arrival to Manchester in 1986, he transformed his club to become the most successful club in England and a global brand recognized by billions across the world. In comparison to Ferguson’s influence, Belichick’s seems miniscule.

Over the past seven days, flocks of journalists, players and coaches paid tribute to Ferguson. I was initially wary of joining the herd by writing my own Ferguson tribute. But upon realizing how influential Sir Alex has been to my childhood, I couldn’t resist.

Ferguson and his Manchester United made me a huge soccer fan, but upon further reflection, he meant a lot more. He was a hero and a teacher for me — being a role model for me to strive toward.

Whenever I think of Ferguson’s influence on me, I drift back to middle school, when  I played pickup soccer. My friends and I all cherry-picked the best qualities of our favorite soccer idols — most of them Manchester United players — and mimicked how they played.

For 30 minutes of lunchtime every day, we were Fergie’s boys. We proudly represented Manchester United from Los Angeles.

I now have a more mature appreciation of Ferguson as a manager and as a man. Now, I aspire to be like Fergie — a man driven by his passion to become the best in his profession yet someone who never forgot his roots and his compassion.

Ferguson was a man of many flaws — most notably, his ruthlessness to his players and journalists — but his strengths ultimately triumphed over his blemishes.

One of the most endearing tributes I’ve read of Ferguson this past week was from a journalist who was banned three times from the Manchester United training grounds. The journalist fondly recalled how Ferguson took time to help out his long time beat writers and regularly attend funerals of staff members and their families.

He knew the line between business and personal. He knew when to be Sir Alex and when to just be Alex. That is something I would like to emulate.

Before I conclude, I want to flash back to July 2005, when Ferguson signed Korean midfielder Park Ji-Sung to Manchester United. As the first Asian player to play in England, Park was my childhood hero, and the signing was a huge moment in my life.

In hindsight, I came to realize that Park’s signing was solely business, but back in 2005, it represented something more. It symbolized that if you worked hard, anybody — even a pockmarked, flat-footed soccer player like Park — can reach his or her dream. It was the American Dream — taking place in northwestern England.

For an immigrant boy like me, who — at the time struggled to fit into the American lifestyle — that was a groundbreaking realization.

Now at Berkeley, I am living a part of the dream. At the same time, Alex Ferguson is moving on, having lived his dream.

While we’ve never crossed paths, I just want him to know how he shaped who I am. I just want to thank him.

Contact Seung Y. Lee at sylee@dailycal.org Follow him on Twitter @sngyn92.

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Due in large part to Jolene Henderson’s healthy return to the circle, the Bears (36-17) finally resemble the team they were during their 24-game winning streak in pre-conference play. With its Pac-12 struggles now just a remnant of the past, Cal feels like it is finally coming together.

“I think we’re firing on all cylinders right now,” said sophomore shortstop Cheyenne Cordes. “We’re all getting healthy. We’re all on the come-up.”

Starting on Friday in Ann Arbor, Mich., Cal will open postseason play in the NCAA Softball Tournament Regionals against Central Michigan (33-18). The winner of the series will go on to face the victor of the eighth-seeded Michigan (45-10) and Valparaiso (34-25) matchup.

In a double-elimination style tournament, the winner of the Michigan Regional will advance to the Super Regional round, where it will face off against the winner of the LSU Regional.

Just two hours from Ann Arbor, CMU should hold a home-field advantage over Cal, even though the regional location is considered neutral for both squads. CMU currently boasts a team batting average of .286, led by senior outfielder Macy Merchant and her .415 batting average.

The Bears’ hopes will rest on the shoulders and the injured left knee of Henderson. Despite missing six games due to injury, the All-American still led the Pac-12 with 35 starts, 28 wins, 262.2 innings pitched and an ERA of 1.20. However, with the inconsistencies of Cal’s offensive attack, Henderson can’t afford any major slip-ups. The Bears finished the season with a team batting average of .267 — the worst in the conference.

“I think it all has to do with the lineup being relaxed,” Cordes said. “We added some unnecessary pressure on to ourselves.”

Cal’s biggest obstacle on its path to the LSU Super Regional should be Michigan. The Wolverines cruised to a 20-2 finish in the Big 10 behind the .399 batting average of first baseman and catcher Caitlin Blanchard and the 1.81 ERA of Sara Driesenga. Undefeated at home, Michigan holds a sizeable advantage over the Bears and their 8-8 road record.

Last season, Cal hosted the regional and emerged as the winners. But this season, it doesn’t enter as the favorites but instead as the underdogs.

“There’s definitely somewhat of a different feel,” Cordes said. “Last year, it was more of an expectation (to win). We still expect to win, but we’ve gone through the struggle (this season).”

Despite the Bears having to battle several injuries this season, Cordes stressed the importance of ending the season on a positive and healthy note. After injuries to Henderson, utility player Victoria Jones and Cordes herself, the Bears are finally healthy again. And after going winless in a three-week span, the Bears finally defeated Washington last Saturday.

“We had never had a nine-game losing streak,” Cordes said. “For us to end on that winning note was a big deal. We even called it the start of our winning streak.”

Sean Wagner-McGough covers softball. Contact him at swagnermcgough@dailycal.org. Follow him on Twitter @seanjwagner.

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It was an expectation.

The team has made the Sweet 16 for seven consecutive years — including the last six, with Amanda Augustus as head coach. The Bears’ regular season, like the six seasons before it, has been nothing more than an opening act for the main event.

“Going to the Sweet 16 is part of the culture on our team,” Augustus said.

On Friday, No. 8 Cal will face No. 9 Alabama, whose team made it to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history.

For the Bears, the question is still the same as it has been all season: Can they go all the way and deliver Cal its first NCAA championship?

It is not out of the question. As a No. 8 seed, Cal advanced to the title match in 2008 and again in 2009 as the No. 9 seed. Ever since those impressive seasons — Augustus’ first two years as the coach — the Bears have been unable to return to the finals.

As the seeding indicates, the Bears will be the favorite in their matchup against the Crimson Tide. Alabama does not have a singles player on its roster ranked in the top 25, while Cal has both No. 5 Zsofi Susanyi and No. 8 Anett Schutting in the top 10.

The Crimson Tide will be the second SEC opponent that the Bears will play in a row and the second team from the state of Alabama. The Cal squad swept Auburn, 4-0, last Saturday at the Hellman Tennis Complex in Berkeley.

If Cal bests the Crimson Tide (21-5) in Urbana, Ill., on Friday, its path will become much more daunting. The Bears will likely have to face top-seeded Florida on Sunday, should they make it to the Elite 8.

The good news for Cal is that the team has been producing its best tennis now than it has been all season. The Bears (18-5) are riding on an eight-match win streak and have brought home 13 victories in their last 14 dual matches.

“If we’re not peaking now, I don’t know,” Augustus said after the Auburn match. “And it seems as some of our health issues are at a place where we can handle them.”

As late as it is in the season, the Bears are healthiest they have ever been. Cal’s top player, fifth-ranked Susanyi, has been in and out of the lineup with a hip flexor injury. Meanwhile, freshman Klara Fabikova, who plays on the No. 2 court in singles and doubles, was hampered early in the season, along with senior Annie Goransson.

All those players were on the court last weekend and appeared to be at full strength.

“I felt good to be back on the court,” Susanyi said. “I feel like I’m 100 percent, and I’m so excited to play.”

The Bears are ready. As they’ve known all along, their dedication and effort all season have been leading up to this weekend.

“We’ll work hard and prepare as we have all season,” Augustus said. “Now it’s just who wants it more.”

Riley McAtee covers women’s tennis. Contact him at rmcatee@dailycal.org

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And they handled it well.

For the third year in a row, the Bears clinched their round-of-32 match to advance to the NCAA Sweet 16.

But for the first time in three years, the Cal squad was not anticipating its second-round matchup. No. 18 Cal had to pull its difficult 4-1 win over the lowest seed in its bracket — unranked Denver.

In the first round of the NCAA team championships on Friday, the Bears crushed Florida State, 4-1, to advance to the second round of the NCAAs in Gainesville, Fla.

After seizing the doubles point with wins on courts No. 2 and 3, Cal quickly took down three Seminoles to emerge as 4-1 victors. Although the Bears conquered Florida in two sets each in singles, the Seminoles did not fall without first displaying some resistance.

“Florida State kept fighting, and it was hot and humid,” said Cal coach Peter Wright. “Luckily, we were able to get to four in time, but it was a hard-fought match.”

After taking down Florida State, the Bears were wholly anticipating a rematch against No. 15 Florida, the top seed in the bracket, for the round-of-32s. They defeated the Gators earlier this season — on Feb. 16 — with a 4-1 win at the ITA National Indoor Championships held in Seattle.

But the unranked Denver team unexpectedly pulled a narrow 4-3 upset of the Gators and advanced to the second round with the Bears. After losing the doubles point and trailing 3-1 in singles, the Pioneers managed to stun Florida in the round-of-64.

Denver was the only team across the country to upset a ranked squad in the first round of the tournament.

“That was quite unexpected,” Wright said. “Denver played with a tremendous amount of heart and energy, and quite frankly, that heart and energy carried over into our match today.”

In doubles on Saturday, the Pioneers fiercely battled against the Bears, fighting back despite trailing on all three courts to start the doubles round. Denver eventually took the first-point advantage after the Pioneer pair of Enej Bonin and Jens Vorkefeld topped Cal’s Christoffer Konigsfeldt and Campbell Johnson on the top court, 8-6. According to Wright, the Bears failed to play aggressively at the net and ultimately handed the first point over to Denver.

“They outplayed us in the doubles point, and that was surprising to all of us because they lost the doubles point fairly easily to Florida the day before,” Wright said. “We were being a little tentative and passive.”

In singles, the Bears and Pioneers exchanged a few games before getting rained out and having to move to indoor courts. The rain delays, however, gave the Bears time to recuperate and shift the momentum in their favor.

Once Cal initiated play inside, the team found its rhythm and notched four straight points across courts two, three, four and five.

“We took advantage of that small amount of time and came out firing after that rain delay,” Wright said. “We were a different team from doubles, coming out and taking initiative — playing the Cal style of tennis.”

Janice Chua covers men’s tennis. Contact her at jchua@dailycal.org.

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But not anymore.

In two of their last three matches of the regular season, the Bears had to make a comeback in singles after dropping doubles matches and finding themselves in early 1-0 deficits. This included doubles losses to opponents like Arizona, who weren’t strong enough to even make the 64-team NCAA tournament.

The Bears’ top duo of Lynn Chi and Anett Schutting seemed to be clicking earlier in the year, when they won five straight doubles matches. But down the stretch, the duo was only 3-4 in their last 7 doubles matches of the season.

Match after match, it seemed like the Bears could only hang on in doubles by a thread and would often have to use their strong singles play to bail themselves out later.

But with their drumming of Auburn, 4-0, on Saturday at Hellman Tennis Complex, that may no longer be the case.

It was no surprise that No. 8 Cal cruised through Stony Brook, 4-0, on Friday. But Auburn, the No. 25 team in the nation, was supposed to give Cal a tougher challenge in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Instead, the Bears dominated and earned a trip to the Sweet 16.

Unlike in their usual sluggish starts in the regular season, the Bears exploded in doubles against Auburn. Tayler Davis and Kelly Chui jumped to an 8-1 win on court No. 3, and Anett Schutting and Lynn Chi — the same duo that was struggling just a few weeks ago — beat the No. 10 doubles team in the country with an 8-3 win on the top court to earn the doubles point for the Bears.

“I thought we were solid,” said Cal coach Amanda Augustus. “And then, on court No. 3, we had a really, really good day. That got us off to a great start.”

The Bears carried that momentum over into singles, where the Cal freshmen rocked Hellman Tennis Complex. Lynn Chi raced to a 6-0, 6-1 finish on court No. 4 to give Cal its second point of the match. Meanwhile, Cal’s other freshman, Klara Fabikova, dominated her opponent in a 6-1, 6-1 route.

The Bears needed just one more point to put the match away.

Seniors Tayler Davis and Annie Goransson were each up five games in their second sets, needing just one more game from either to seal the match for the Bears.

“Me and Annie were kind of in a race to see who would finish first,” Davis said. “(Assistant coach) Cordell was sorta joking with me to see who would finish first.”

Davis was able to beat Goransson in their race to finish off the opponent first, winning 6-3 on her court to give the Bears the four points needed to end the match.

It was a fitting end for the senior captain’s last match in Berkeley.

“I think a couple of them had a look up at the scoreboard and may have deferred to their senior captains a little bit,” Augustus said, smiling. “This is her big day.”

Watch an interview with co-captain Tayler Davis here

Riley McAtee covers women’s tennis. Contact him at rmcatee@dailycal.org

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