BOISE, Idaho - Utah State women's tennis opened its 2019 fall tournament schedule at the Barb Chandler Classic on Friday, recording three victories over the course of four contests in the mini-duel brackets. The tournament is being played as a pairs tournament, with teammates pairing in doubles and then playing singles with the best of three winners advancing to the next round of the bracket.

"It was a great start to our fall season today," head women's tennis coach Sean McInerney said. "I love the format with mini team duels in a tournament format. We came out and won three out of the four duels including three impressive third-set wins in singles."

Senior Lucy Octave and freshman Carolina Millan went 2-1 in their matches against Weber State's duo of Caitlin Herb and Patty Kuo, advancing to play Boise State's duo of Wiktoria Nosek and Joana Baptista.

Senior Hannah Jones and sophomore Sidnee Lavatai are in the same side of the bracket with Octave and Millan and could provide an all-Utah State final after going 2-1 against Idaho's team of Laura Spataro and Hutchet. Jones and Lavatai will face Weber State's duo of Yuuna Ukita and Megan Lombardi in the semifinals tomorrow.

In the other bracket, Utah State's team of sophomore Gabrielle Dekkers and freshman Zara Ryan recorded a 2-1 victory over Idaho's team of Maggie and Todorovic, and will face Madison Fenske and Melissa Coburn of Idaho State in the semifinals tomorrow. Utah State freshman Renata Lombera recorded a singles victory, but her team with sophomore Annaliese County lost 2-1 in its opening round matchup against Weber State's Cali Fuller and Morrett. County and Lombera will open the day on Saturday in the consolation bracket, facing Idaho State's team of Angela Walker and Alexandra Arkipov at 8 a.m. (MT).

"Our two seniors Hannah (Jones) and Lucy (Octave) had a really big day for us going 2-0 in singles and showing great leadership," McInerney said. "It was also a great day for our three freshman who went 3-0 on the day, and showed a lot of toughness and battled to get the wins. Tomorrow will be another chance to get better with three teams competing in the semifinals."

Fans can follow USU's women's tennis team on Twitter @USUWomensTennis, on Facebook at UtahStateWomensTennis or on Instagram @USUWomensTennis. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter at @USUAthletics, on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on Instagram @USUAthletics.

-USU-