LONG BEACH, Calif. — No. 68 Long Beach State secured a 4-2 victory over No. 60 Dartmouth on Friday afternoon at the Rhodes Tennis Center, improving to 10-7 on the season while handing the Big Green just their fourth loss.
The match opened with doubles play, where Dartmouth secured the point with wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Sam Grosjean and Alexandra Orlins earned a 7-5 victory over Pamela Badillo and Thea Jagare, while Josephine Lombardi and Elise Wong completed a 6-3 win against Daisy Carpenter and Diana De Simone. Cecilia Costa and Paulina Franco held a narrow 6-5 lead at No. 1 when the match was halted.
Trailing 1-0, Long Beach State engineered a dramatic comeback as the match unfolded in sequence. Dartmouth pushed its advantage to 2-0 behind Sam Grosjean’s 6-3, 6-4 win at No. 5, leaving the Beach needing four straight courts. Paulina Franco ignited the turnaround with a gritty 6-0, 4-6, 6-2 win at No. 4, and Diana De Simone followed by leveling the match with a clutch 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 performance at No. 2. With momentum fully shifting, Thea Jagare battled through three sets at No. 3 for a 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory to give LBSU its first lead of the day. All eyes then turned to the top court, where Cecilia Costa delivered the clinching moment, rallying from a set down to defeat Peyton Capuano 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 and cap a four-point surge that sealed the 4-2 win.
With four singles victories, Long Beach State overturned the doubles deficit and controlled the middle courts to secure the 4-2 team result, highlighted by three three-set wins that demonstrated depth and resilience across the lineup.