Tuesday, Oct. 13
The ITA Mountain Regional Championships opened Tuesday with qualifying singles matches. No BYU players competed on the opening day as teams across the Mountain Region battled for spots in the main draw.
Wednesday, Oct. 14
Main draw singles and doubles competition began Wednesday, with all nine Cougars competing in the opening round of singles.
Bergeson opened her singles run with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Colorado’s Lera Alexin, while Yuyun Chen also advanced with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Utah’s Hayley Roberts. Chelsea Bluestein had a dominant 6-0, 6-2 victory over Utah State’s Tayla Wilmot.
The Cougars also competed in doubles. Bella Lewis and Bergeson defeated Colorado State’s Logan Voeks and Zaria McGinty 8-4, while Sephi Sheng and Allegra van der Walt got the edge over Nevada’s Kennedy Robinson and Lucis Vagnerova in a tiebreak, 8⁷-7². Bluestein and Chen and Korhonen and Tan also advanced through their opening doubles round with byes.
Thursday, Oct. 15
BYU continued singles and doubles competition Thursday, with Bergeson, Chen and Bluestein competing in the singles round of 32.
Bergeson defeated Denver’s Francesca Tye 6-3, 6-2 to advance; Bluestein earned a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Idaho State’s Emmy Richards. Chen fell to Utah State’s Terezia Mlkva 6-3, 6-1.
In doubles, Bluestein and Chen defeated Colorado State’s Annika Planinsek and Sorcha Caves 8-3 before earning an 8-6 victory over Nevada’s Oliwia Kuszel and Defne Aydemir to advance to the quarterfinals.
Korhonen and Tan defeated New Mexico’s Maria Matsoukatidi and Yu Yun Tsai 8-1, then took Utah’s Maya Inouye and Adriana Zurita Berdecio 8-7 in the round of 16 to reach the quarterfinals. Sheng and Allegra van der Walt had an 8-3 victory over Boise State’s Allison Isaacs and Ella Piron before falling to Ema Bubalo and Lera Alexin, 8-5.
In extra singles matches, Korhonen defeated UNLV’s Stela Dzimovic 6-4, 6-3, while Allegra van der Walt earned a three-set win over Colorado’s Lera Alexin, 6-0, 4-6, [10]-[3]. Tan also picked up a victory, defeating UNLV’s Eszter Kis-Czako 6-4, 6-4.
Friday, Oct. 16
Bergeson continued her run through the singles draw with two three-set victories Friday. She first defeated Mlkva 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the round of 16 before rallying past Boise State’s Tereza Polakova in the quarterfinals.
After dropping the opening set 6-0 against Polakova, Bergeson responded with a 6-4 second set and closed out the match with a 6-3 victory in the third to advance to the semifinals.
Bluestein also advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Utah’s Hams Metwali 6-0, 6-4. She then fell to Wyoming’s Silver Bijlsma in a competitive three-set match, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.
In doubles, both BYU teams reached the quarterfinals. Bluestein and Chen fell to New Mexico State’s Whitney Moon and Nadia Victoria Nemeth 8-6, while Korhonen and Tan defeated Colorado’s Pia Rebec and Loise Ternstrom 8-2 to advance to the semifinals.
Korhonen and Tan faced Colorado’s Bubalo and Alexin in the doubles semifinals, where their run ended with a 6-4, 6-2 loss.
The Cougars also competed in extra singles matches, with Allegra van der Walt defeating Utah’s Daskalova 6-1, 6-2, while Angelique van der Walt earned a 6-2, 6-0 victory over Idaho State’s Macy Richards. Lewis battled Boise State’s Carla Grignac in three sets before falling in a deciding tiebreak, 6-4, 3-6, [11]-[13]. Chen fell to Utah’s Nike Lenz, 6-4, 6-1.
Saturday, Oct. 17
Bergeson had the tournament’s defining performance Saturday, rallying from a substantial deficit to defeat Bijlsma in the singles semifinals and secure her place at the NCAA Individual Championships.
Bergeson dropped the first set 6-1 and fell behind 4-1 in the second. Facing a difficult deficit, saving four match points and fighting her way back into the set.
The second set came down to a tiebreaker, where Bergeson prevailed 12-10 to even the match. She carried the momentum into the third set, winning 6-2 to complete the comeback and earn her spot in the singles final.
Bergeson’s semifinal victory secured an automatic bid to the NCAA Individual Championships in November. The win capped off an impressive week for Bergeson, who came into the tournament unseeded and fought through the draw to earn a place on the national stage.
“I couldn’t be more proud of Sage. To come into this tournament unseeded, battle all week, and earn a spot at the NCAA National Championship is an incredible accomplishment,” head coach Holly Hasler said. “Down 6-1, 4-1, saving four match points, she never stopped believing or competing. She continued to play brave, trust her game, and fight for every point.”
Up Next
BYU women’s tennis will travel to Fort Worth, Texas, for the Battle for the Boot tournament beginning Oct. 22.
