The Iowa women’s tennis team came up short in back-to-back Big Ten matchups this weekend, falling to No. 22 UCLA on Friday and No. 16 USC on Sunday at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex.

The Hawkeyes took the courts against the Bruins on Friday, Iowa coming in hot from a 4-1 road win against Rutgers on April 6. Despite this, the highly ranked UCLA team proved a challenge in both doubles and singles during the competition, and the Bruins emerged with a 4-2 victory over the Hawkeyes.

“We had a hard-fought battle against a good UCLA team,” head coach Sasha Boros told HawkeyeSports. “We appreciate all the great fans that came out to support us tonight. We were searching for that fourth point and just came up short. But it was a great match, and there’s a lot we can learn from it.”

Iowa remained at home on familiar courts to battle the Trojans on Sunday, this time falling in a 4-0 shutout. 

The contest carried much more emotional weight, marking both the Hawkeyes’ last contest at home this season along with Senior Day celebrations for the team’s own Barbora Pokorna of the Czech Republic and Marisa Schmidt of Germany.

Despite the losses, the season is not yet over, with a now 12-8 Iowa team next heading out west to face Oregon on April 18 and Washington on April 20, the last two meets of the regular season. With the Hawkeyes sporting a 6-5 overall conference record, these two foes, while unranked, will likely have a large role in determining Iowa’s part in the Big Ten tournament, set for April 23-27 in Ojai, California.

“We thank all the people that came out and supported us this season,” Boros said. “We felt all their love. We’re going to regroup and get ready to finish the season on the road. We’re looking forward to playing Oregon next Friday.”