Canyons Women's Tennis Returns to Action in 2022 Season Opener

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

COSTA MESA — College of the Canyons dropped a 5-4 result to host Orange Coast College on Friday after returning to play for the 2022 season.

The Cougars notched a pair of doubles victories and saw its No. 4 and No. 5 players claim singles wins to keep things close vs. the host Pirates.

COC's No. 1 doubles team of freshmen Ashley Villarta and Lexi Paunovic teamed for an 8-3 victory, while the duo of Lauren Neal and Hannah Heiber were 8-0 winners for the Cougars.

In singles action it waas also Neal and Heiber claiming COC victories from the No. 4 and No. 5 spots.

The Pirates were able to sweep the top three singles matches, then clinched the victory with a win in the No. 6 spot.

Friday's match was the first action for Canyons since March 5, 2020. The Cougars had played to a 9-2 overall record that year before having its season postponed and eventually cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

COC will continue early season action with a trio of upcoming home matches. Up next, the Cougars will host conference opponent L.A. Mission at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 1, in its 2022 home opener.

COC will then host College of the Sequoias in a non-conference match at 12 p.m. on Wednesday before returning to conference play vs. Santa Monica at 2 p.m. on Thursday Feb. 3.

Full results from Friday's match vs. Orange Coast are included below:

Doubles

1. Villarta/Paunovic (COC) defeats Koitka/Veltri (OCC) — 8-3

2. Russell/Hannah (COC) loses to Moreno/Salter (OCC) — 5-8

3. Neil/Heiber (COC) defeats Tu/Vu(OCC) — 8-0

Singles 

1. Ashley Villarta (COC) loses to Logan Koitka (OCC) — 5-7, 4-6

2. Jennifer Russell (COC) loses to Maddy Veltri (OCC) — 1-6, 2-6

3. Lauren Hannah (COC) loses to Jade Moreno (OCC) — 0-6, 0-6

4. Lauren Neal (COC) defeats Ruth Salter (OCC) —6-4, 6-3

5. Hannah Heiber (COC) defeats Tiffany Tu (OCC) — 6-3, 6-3

6. Leslie Galaviz (COC) loses to Allison Dobrea (OCC) — 3-6, 2-6

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.