STANFORD, Calif. – Incoming freshman Michaela Gordon grinded out a hard-fought, three-set victory on Saturday afternoon in Bank of the West Classic qualifying competition at Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
The 18-year-old Gordon, a native of nearby Saratoga, outlasted Jacqueline Cako 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in a match that took two hours and 22 minutes to complete. Gordon and Cako, an All-American in three seasons at Arizona State from 2011-13, were facing off in the final match of the afternoon session inside the stadium.
Gordon, one of two Stanford wildcards in the qualifying draw, will next face seventh-seeded Marina Erakovic of New Zealand on Sunday in the third match inside the stadium. If Gordon wins on Sunday, she will advance into the main draw. Play begins at 10 a.m. and admission is free.
Rising sophomore and fellow wildcard entrant Emma Higuchi was not as lucky in her Bank of the West Classic debut, dropping a 6-3, 6-1 decision to Asia Muhammad earlier in the morning.
An All-Pac-12 Second Team selection as a freshman in 2017, Higuchi led the Cardinal with a 33-4 overall record and was 22-1 in duals, playing most of her matches at the No. 6 spot (18-1). Higuchi produced a 22-match winning streak from Jan. 27-May 22, representing Stanford's longest since Mallory Burdette won 21 straight matches in 2012.
Stanford will also be represented when the main draw gets underway, with former All-Americans Kristie Ahn and Nicole Gibbs scheduled to compete. Ahn and Gibbs were members of Stanford's 2013 NCAA championship team.
Currently ranked No. 125 in the world, Gibbs has been competing on the WTA tour since 2013, months after electing to turn pro following her junior season on The Farm. An All-American in singles during each of her three seasons (2011-13) at Stanford, Gibbs was a two-time NCAA Singles champion (2012, 2013) and teamed with Mallory Burdette to capture the 2012 NCAA Doubles crown. Gibbs, who helped guide Stanford to a national title in 2013, wrapped up her career with a 111-15 overall record and was 65-6 in duals. One of seven Cardinal players named to the Pac-12 All-Century Team, Gibbs was also a three-time all-conference pick and her 27 dual match wins in 2011 rank third in school history.
Checking in at No. 116 in the world, Ahn was a three-time All-American in singles who also added doubles to her resume in 2013. Ahn was responsible for providing a dramatic three-set clincher in Stanford's 2013 NCAA championship as a junior, a storybook moment after her sophomore year was shortened due to injury. Ahn left The Farm having compiled a 97-17 overall record and 57-8 mark in duals. A three-time all-conference selection, Ahn started her career as the ITA National Rookie of the Year and finished as the ITA National Senior Player of the Year.
The most decorated program in women's college tennis with 19 national championships (18 NCAA, 1 AIAW), Stanford produced a runner-up finish in 2017, falling 4-1 to Florida and coming up one step short in its bid to repeat as NCAA champions. The Gators were responsible for two of the Cardinal's three losses. The Cardinal, which improved to 147-19 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, reached the national final despite being seeded No. 7 and has now won 16 of its last 19 NCAA matches when seeded lower than its opponent. Stanford strung together a pair of 11-match winning streaks, maintained a spot among the nation's top-15 for the majority of the season and closed its campaign ranked No. 2 in the final rankings.
ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the US Open Series. Owned and operated by IMG, the WTA Premier event features a 28-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $776,000. Held on Stanford University's campus at Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.
ABOUT BANK OF THE WEST: Bank of the West is a regional financial services company chartered in California and headquartered in San Francisco with $77.2 billion in assets as of March 31, 2016. Founded in 1874, Bank of the West provides a wide range of personal, commercial, wealth management and international banking services through more than 600 offices in 23 states and digital channels. Bank of the West is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, which has a presence in 75 countries with 185,000 employees.