DENVER, Colo. – BYU women’s tennis (6-3) was defeated by Denver (4-3), 6-1, at the Denver Tennis Park on Saturday. The Cougars head back to Provo after going 0-2 on the Colorado road trip.

In the No. 1 match, Anastasia Abramyan and Helen Jiao had the tall task of playing No. 36 Taylor Melvill and Hada Chang. Abramyan and Jiao were able to defeat the Pioneers duo decisively, 6-2. It was the first win against a nationally ranked opponent of the season for the Cougars.

Leah Heimuli and Emilee Astle battled tight with Britt Pusell and Camille Verden-Anderson but were defeated, 7-6 (8) in one of the closest matches of the day. In the No. 3 slot, Qianxin Kong and Kara Lin lost to Toni Nelson and Anna Riedmiller, 6-2, and the Cougars lost the doubles point for only the third time all season. BYU is 1-2 in those three matches.

The Pioneers carried the momentum earned in doubles play, winning five of the six singles contests. After defeating Melville in doubles, Abramyan couldn’t duplicate the result in the singles match, losing, 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (3). Riedmiller defeated Heimuli, 6-3, 7-5. Astle battled Pursell, but came up short, 6-3, 6-3.

Lin matched up with Verden-Anderson in the No. 4 match, but Verden-Anderson came away with the victory, 6-1, 6-0. Jiao tallied the lone win on the day for the Cougars in dominant fashion, 6-2, 6-1. With the win, Jiao moved to 5-3 on the season. In the No. 6 spot, Denver’s Nelson defeated Kong, 6-3, 6-0, for the second time of the day.

BYU will play its seventh and eighth consecutive road matches next week when it travels to Eugene, Oregon. The Cougars will play the Oregon Ducks on Friday, Feb. 26 and Seattle University on Saturday, Feb. 27. The Ducks will head into the match with a record of 5-1.

MATCH RESULTS

BYU 1, Denver 6

Doubles Matches

1. Anastasia Abramyan/Helen Jiao (BYU) def. No. 36 Taylor Melville/Hada Chang (DU), 6-2

2. Britt Pusell/Camille Verden-Anderson (DU) def. Leah Heimuli/Emilee Astle (BYU), 7-6 (8)

3. Toni Nelson/Anna Riedmiller (DU), def. Qianxin Kong/Kara Lin (BYU), 6-2

Singles Matches

1. Taylor Melville (DU) def. Anastasia Abramyan (BYU), 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (3)

2. Anna Riedmiler (DU) def. Leah Heimuli (BYU), 6-3, 7-5

3. Britt Pursell (DU) def. Emilee Astle (BYU), 6-3, 6-3

4. Camille Verden-Anderson (DU) def. Kara Lin (BYU), 6-1, 6-0

5. Helen Jiao (BYU) def. Tatum Burger (DU), 6-2, 6-1

6. Toni Nelson (DU) def. Qianxin Kong (BYU), 6-3, 6-0

PROVO, Utah – BYU women’s tennis will face Colorado (4-1) on Friday afternoon, Feb. 19, at the South Campus Tennis Complex and Denver (3-3) on Saturday, Feb. 20, at the Denver Tennis Park. The Cougars are coming off of a dominant 5-2 victory at Boise State on Friday.

BYU Notes (6-1, 0-0 West Coast Conference)

• The Cougars are 6-1, most recently defeating Boise State 5-2, in Boise.
• BYU has wins over Boise State, Sacramento State, Fresno State, Dixie State (twice), Weber State. The lone loss was to Cal Poly.
• The Cougars are off to their best start since the 2004-05 season when the team started 7-1. BYU went on to finish the year 20-4, with a conference championship and a win in the NCAA Championships.
• BYU is led by a trio of seniors in Anastasia Abramyan, Leah Heimuli and Madeline Almeida Wanlass. They combine for a 13-3 record in singles matches, including an impressive 5-0 start by Wanlass. The group has also gone 10-4 in doubles matches.
• Freshman Qianxin Kong logged the first career singles and doubles wins of her career against Boise State on Friday. Fellow freshmen Kara Lin and Elizabeth Tullis have made splashes as well. Lin holds a 4-2 record in singles play and 6-1 in doubles, while Tullis is 2-0 in singles matches and 4-2 in doubles.

Head Coach – Holly Parkinson Hasler

• Alma Mater: BYU, 1998
• Division I Career Record: 25-15 (3rd season)
• Record at BYU: 25-15 (3rd season)

Colorado Notes (4-1, 0-0 Pac-12)

• Colorado is 4-1, with its most recent victory coming over Wyoming, 7-0, on Saturday.
• Colorado has wins over Wyoming, Utah State, North Dakota and Metro State. The Buffs’ loss came on the road at Iowa State.
• The Buffs finished last season 8-6, but lost three of their final four matches.
• Colorado lost just one senior from a season ago and return eight players from last season.
• The last meeting between BYU and Colorado came on Feb. 6, 2010. No. 60 Colorado defeated BYU 3-4 in Provo. BYU leads the all-time series 20-1.  

Head Coach – Danielle Steinberg

• Alma Mater: Arizona, 2009
• Division I Career Record: 98-95 (10th Season)
• Record at Colorado: 22-21 (3rd Season)

Denver Notes (3-3, 0-0 Summit Conference) 

• Denver is 3-3 and was last defeated by Kansas State, 4-2, on Saturday.
• Denver has wins over Kansas, Utah State and Air Force. The Pioneers have losses to Kansas State, Wisconsin and USC.
• The Pioneers finished last season 12-4 and earned a No. 37 ranking.
• Denver lost just one player from last year’s squad and have no newcomers this year.
• BYU defeated Denver last year in Provo, 4-3, to snap a five-match losing streak to the Pioneers. Denver came into the match as the No. 33 ranked team in the nation. Sophomores Emilee Astle and Helen Jiao played a crucial role in the Cougars’ upset, with Astle clinching the doubles point with Polina Malykh and Jiao collecting the deciding fourth point for BYU. The series between the two schools is tied 8-8.

Head Coach – Christian Bass

• Alma Mater: Notre Dame, 2007
• Division I Career Record: 120-46 (8th Season)
• Record at Denver: 120-46 (8th Season)

BYU Doubles Records

1. Anastasia Abramyan & Madeline Almeida Wanlass (0-1)
2. Leah Heimuli & Kara Lin (5-1)
3. Emilee Astle & Helen Jiao (4-1)
4. Madeline Almeida Wanlass & Elizabeth Tullis (2-0)
5. Anastasia Abramyan & Elizabeth Tullis (2-0)
6. Anastasia Abramyan & Qianxin Kong (0-1)
7. Anastasia Abramyan & Helen Jiao (1-0)
8. Leah Heimuli & Emilee Astle (0-1)
9. Qianxin Kong & Kara Lin (1-0)

BYU Singles Records

1. Anastasia Abramyan (3-1)
2. Leah Heimuli (5-2)
3. Kara Lin (4-2)
4. Emilee Astle (5-1)
5. Helen Jiao (4-2)
6. Madeline Almeida Wanlass (5-0)
7. Xenia De Luna (3-0)
8. Elizabeth Tullis (2-0)
9. Qianxin Kong (1-0)

Colorado Match Information — February 19

Time: 2:00 p.m. MST

Location: South Campus Tennis Complex, Boulder, Colorado

Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Denver Match Information — February 20

Time: 12:00 p.m. MST

Location: Denver Tennis Park, Denver, Colorado