THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Cal Lutheran women's tennis went on the road to face Redlands on Saturday afternoon, coming up just short in a 4-3 defeat.
The Regals struggled in the doubles matches, as
Mina Ahmadi/
Carmen Bufkin lost 6-1 in the #1 spot.
Kylee Limpias/
Evelyn Oltmans made their debut as a duo in the #2 spot, falling 6-4. In the #3 spot,
Anya Rajan/
Luisa Garcia sent their set to a tiebreak, eventually being defeated 7(7)-6(3). The Bulldogs would enter the singles matches up 1-0.
Limpias dropped her match in the #4 spot 6-4, 6-1. Ahmadi made just her second singles appearance of 2025, and her first since February, in a 6-0, 6-1 defeat in the #3 spot. Rajan lost 6-1, 6-4 in the #2 spot, clinching the match for Redlands.
However, Cal Lutheran displayed resilience in its remaining matches, with Garcia claiming a 7(7)-6(5), 6-3 victory in the #5 spot to get the Regals on the board. Garcia stayed hot, winning three of her last four singles matches.
With the team match already over, 10-point third-set tiebreakers were implemented. Two matches went the distance.
The first was in the #6 spot, where Oltmans won the first set but dropped the second in a close one. She hung on in the tiebreak to win 6-1, 5-7, [10-6]. Oltmans is now 7-4 in singles in 2025 and has won two of her last three in an impressive first collegiate season.
Bufkin faced arguably her toughest opponent so far this calendar year, as Redlands' top player entered the match ranked #3 in the West Region. Bufkin entered the day ranked #7. The #1 spot match was an absolute battle, with Bufkin losing the first set in a tiebreak but claiming the second, with both sets going to extra games. It all came down to a 10-point tiebreak, which Bufkin won by three, giving the match a final score of 6(3)-7(7), 7-5, [10-7].
Bufkin has been a force for the Regals all year, and she is now 11-0 in 2025.
Cal Lutheran will return to Thousand Oaks for its final home match of the season for senior night on Tuesday, April 15 at 6pm. The Regals will host #6 Pomona-Pitzer, providing another stiff test in the gauntlet that is the SCIAC.
