DENVER— The Colorado Mesa University women's tennis team came up one victory short as the Mavericks dropped a 4-3 decision to the University of Hawai'i Hilo in a Pacific West Conference match-up on Friday here at the MSU Denver's Assembly Athletic Complex.
 
The Mavericks won two of the three doubles matches and received singles wins from Makenna Livingston and Issy Coman in the top two slinges flights but could not hold 1-0, 2-1 or 3-2 overall leads as the Vulcans took the No. 5 and 6 singles matches in straight sets to complete the comeback.
 
CMU fell to 10-11 on the season while the Vulcans improved to 7-7.  The two teams were ranked ninth and tenth, respectively, in the PacWest rankings coming into the day and are both likely to be amongst the 12 teams selected for the PacWest Tournament when those selections are announced next week.
 
Livingston and Coman both went 2-0 on the day to lead the Maverick effort as Coman and Macy Richards blanked Hikari Osaki and Nanami Okamoto, 6-0 in the No. 2 doubles match before Livingston and Halle Romero finished off a 7-5 win over Akari Ichikawa and Julia Braden in the top flight. 
 
The Vulcans' No. 3 pair of Lehua Jordan and Mckenna Mountain were 6-2 winners in between.
 
Osaki then got by Romero, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 in the No. 4 singles to forge the first overall tie at 1 before Coman completed a 6-3, 6-2 win over Barden in the second flight to put the Mavericks back ahead, 2-1.
 
Mountain then came from a set down to win over Richards by a 0-6, 6-3, 7-5 scoreline n the No. 3 singles match before Livingston was able to win a 3-set match of her own over Ichikawa, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the top flight.
 
However, Okamoto and Casydee De Mattos were able to win matches in the final wave to give the Vulcans the team victory.
 
Coman has now won five straight singles decisions while she and Richards have also been victorious in five consecutive doubles matches.
 
The Mavericks will have little time to dwell on the result as they will host Division III Colorado College in their home-opener on Saturday morning at the Elliott Tennis Center in Grand Junction.  The men's and women's duals against the Tigers will begin at 10 a.m.