No. 71 Blue Demons Take Down No. 35 Utah, 4-3

Freshman Jarret Fisher gave the Blue Demons the match with a comeback win at the five spot

Reigning BIG EAST Player of the Week Matea Cutura picked up her fourth ranked win of the season at first singles.

Feb. 9, 2013

CHICAGO - Freshman Jarret Fisher played the hero as No. 71 DePaul women's tennis took down No. 35 Utah, 4-3, in a pulse-pounding finish on Saturday at Lakeshore Sport & Fitness.

Playing at the fifth position, Fisher got off to an early lead, 6-3, against her opponent, Elena Najera-Salas, before dropping the second set by an identical score. With the match hanging in the balance, she finished strong and clinched the match with a 7-5 win in the third set.

The win improved the Blue Demons to 4-2 overall and was the fourth straight victory for DePaul. The Blue Demons are also undefeated at 4-0 when winning the doubles point and when playing at home.

Utah dropped to 2-2 with the loss.

DePaul got on top 1-0 early with a pair of wins on the doubles side.

Zaina Sufi and Fisher brought back the first result, 8-3, from the third position while Kelsey Lawson and Matea Cutura teamed up at the two to give the Blue Demons the point, pulling out a close one, 8-6, over Sarah Pham and Callie Craig.

At the four, Lawson gave the Blue Demons a 2-0 lead in the match and remained unbeaten in 2013 (5-0) with a convincing 6-2, 6-0 win over Lucia Kovarcikova.

The Utes came back with wins at third and sixth singles before Cutura put DePaul back in the lead, 3-2, with a top spot victory in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, over No. 72 Tereza Bekerova. With the result, Cutura moved to 5-1 in dual play with the win and snagged her fourth career win over a ranked opponent.

With the match hanging in the air, the Blue Demons' final matches came down to the wire. Number two Patricia Fargas lost in a three set dog fight, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 against No. 103 Sarah Pham to make it a 3-3 score.

But it was Fisher's big win at the five that turned out to be the match-clincher as DePaul took home its first win over a top-40 opponent since last February -- a 4-3 win over then-No. 31 Arkansas.

Next up for the Blue Demons will be another dual match as DePaul meets Iowa tomorrow at Lakeshore Sport & Fitness. First serve is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. CT.

No. 71 DePaul 4, No. 35 Utah 3

Singles

1. #112 Matea Cutura (D) def. #72 Tereza Bekerova (U) 6-4, 6-2
2. #103 Sarah Pham (U) def. Patricia Fargas (D) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
3. #123 Callie Craig (U) def. Ana Vladutu (D) 6-3, 6-3
4. Kelsey Lawson (D) def. Lucia Kovarcikova 6-2, 6-0
5. #119 Jarret Fisher (D) def. Elena Najera-Salas (U) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
6. Paige Miles (U) def. Zaina Sufi (D) 6-4, 6-4

Order of finish: 4, 6, 1, 3, 2, 5

Doubles

1. #23 Bekerova/Miles (U) def. Fargas/Vladutu (D) 8-6
2. Lawson/Cutura (D) def. Pham/Craig (U) 8-6
3. Sufi/Fisher (D) def. Kovarcikova/Smith (U) 8-3

Order of finish: 3, 1, 2

DePaul University