FOREST GROVE, Ore. – The Pacific Lutheran women's tennis team took its strong start on the road, defeating Pacific 6-3 in Northwest Conference action Friday afternoon.

With the win, PLU improves to a perfect 3-0 overall and 2-0 in conference play. Pacific falls to 1-3 overall and 0-3 in the NWC. The Lutes return to action Saturday morning, taking on Willamette at 11 a.m. in Salem.

The Lutes bounced back after Pacific claimed the first doubles matchup, and PLU did the same later in the match when the Boxers took the first two singles matches. The team of Allison McClure and Mariah Siemion picked up an 8-6 win in the second doubles slot, and Megan Beyers and Emily Bower teamed for an 8-3 win in the third slot.

After Katilyn Lomartire and Francesca Battaglia gave Pacific a 3-2 lead midway through the match, the Lutes closed the day with four straight singles victories. None were ever in much doubt, as Beyers won 6-2 and 6-1, McClure won 6-0 and 6-1, Siemion won 6-2 and 6-2 and Bower won 6-1 and 6-3. The closest matchup came in the No. 2 matchup, where it took a pair of overtime pushes to earn a victory for Battaglia over Samantha Lund.