MORAGA, Calif. – After defeating Portland and LMU at home to begin the West Coast Conference schedule, the test for No. 56 San Diego women's tennis now came on the road in Northern California against Saint Mary's.

However, being away from the Hogan Tennis Center seemed to not make a difference for the Toreros, as they defeated the Gaels 4-0, continuing their strong start to conference play. 

To begin the doubles session, the Toreros' freshman duo in Gabby Gregg and Hannah Read jumped out to a 3-0 lead against the Gaels' Tiana Fox and Madison Weekley. 

Then, USD's top duo of senior Claudia de las Heras and redshirt senior Kailey Evans, ranked No. 35, also took a 3-0 lead against Saint Mary's top pairing of Iman Khan and Olivia Rook before taking a 4-0 lead. 

Gregg and Read took a 5-0 lead and were on the cusp of getting the Toreros one match closer to taking the doubles point. The freshman pair went on to shut out Fox and Weekley, 6-0.

Moments later, de las Heras and Evans secured their match in 6-1 fashion to give the Toreros its first point of the conference dual match.  

In singles, the biggest thing that stood out for the Toreros (8-8, 3-0 WCC) is how they finished the first set against the Gaels (5-10, 1-4 WCC).

Both Gregg and sophomore Kristina Nordikyan jumped out to 3-0 first-set leads in their respective matches. Gregg allowed her opponent to get the next two points before taking over the rest of the way, winning the opening set, 6-2.  

Like Gregg, Nordikyan's opponent, Rook, got back into the first set, tying the set at three. However, the USD sophomore bounced back, winning the next three points to secure the first set, 6-3. 

After being down 2-1, de las Heras won the next two points to take a 3-2 lead against Khan. After Khan tied things up, the Torero senior took the next three points to win the first set 6-3. 

Despite trailing 3-0 early in the first set to Saint Mary's MiaAngelina Ruja, Read not only took the next three points to tie the match, but then also took the following three points to win the set, 6-3. 

In the second set, de las Heras jumped out to an early 2-0 lead before doubling the lead to 4-0. She would ultimately be the first to cash in a point for USD, winning 6-3, 6-0 to give the Toreros a 2-0 dual match lead. 

After allowing the opening point of the second set, Read took the next five points to be on the cusp of match point of her singles match. The USD freshman won, 6-3, 6-3, to give San Diego its third point on the board. 

Nordikyan trailed 2-0 before tying things up at 2-2 in the second set. She took the next three points to take a 5-2 lead. That came before sealing the set and the match with a 6-3 win to give USD the dual match victory over the Gaels. 

Up Next
San Diego wraps up their two-game conference road trip in the Bay Area tomorrow at the University of Pacific in Stockton, Calif. The Toreros and the Tigers will begin with the first serve at 11 a.m.

Results 

No. 56 San Diego 4, St. Mary's 0
Doubles 
1. #35 Claudia de las Heras/Kailey Evans (USD) def. Iman Khan/Olivia Rook (SMC), 6-1
2. Hannah Read/Gabby Gregg (USD) def. Tiana Fox/Madison Weekley (SMC), 6-0 
3. Kristina Nordikyan/Anna Linn Puls (USD) vs. Stefanie Silva/Juliette Daries (SMC) 4-1 (unfinished)

Singles
1. Claudia de las Heras (USD) def. Iman Khan (SMC), 6-3, 6-0
2. #28 Kailey Evans (USD) vs. Juliette Daries (SMC), 4-6, 5-2 (unfinished)
3. Hannah Read (USD) def. MiaAngelina Ruja (SMC), 6-3, 6-3
4. Kristina Nordikyan (USD) def. Olivia Rook (SMC), 6-3, 6-2
5. Gabby Gregg (USD) vs. Stefanie Silva (SMC), 6-2, 2-6, 1-1 (unfinished)
6. Anni Puls (USD) vs. Madison Weekley (SMC), 0-6, 6-2, 2-1 (unfinished)

Match Notes:
San Diego 8-8; National ranking #56
St. Mary's 5-10; NR
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (1,4,3)