By the slimmest of margins—claiming 28 points to the Empire’s 27—Wozniacki and Naomi Broady edged Christina McHale and Maria Irigoyen in a tiebreak to claim the Freedoms’ first set, before Broady and Fabrice Martin brought them even at 12-12 with a 5-3 win in mixed. From there, Wozniacki put on a masterclass, dropping just five points against McHale in women’s singles to give the Freedoms the lead, but the Empire men’s doubles team of Pella and Neal Skupski were not about to have their side go down quietly in the final set. The Empire claimed a break advantage, which was duly erased late, but fought back from the brink and won the last three points of the tiebreak to force Extended Play for the first time this season.
The first two games in the extra frame went the way of New York, and as the Empire built a 0-2 lead on the Lacko serve, a stunning comeback looked to be on the cards. Nonetheless, the Slovak steadied and the Freedoms pair won their sixth 3-3 point in the match to take their first game in the set and secure the win.
Orange County Breakers def. San Diego Aviators, 22-20
For the second night in a row, it looked as though the San Diego Aviators were going to rally for a victory over the Orange County Breakers after dropping the first two sets -- but Steve Johnson had other ideas.
The American No. 2 in the ATP rankings and 2016 Olympian stepped in to close for Orange County and defeated Ryan Harrison in a tiebreak in the final set to give the Breakers their first win of the season, 22-20.
To begin the match, Alla Kudryatvseva, Scott Lipsky and Nicole Gibbs won the mixed doubles and women’s singles, respectively, to get the Breakers off on the right foot. After a 5-3 win in men’s doubles for Harrison and Raven Klaasen, Darija Jurak and Shelby Rogers went up a break on Gibbs and Kudryavtseva as they looked to tie the match. Although the Russian/American pair battled back to break serve at take the set into a tiebreak, Jurak and Rogers would not be denied and won the tiebreak to close the gap to a single game.
Serving as a wildcard in Newport Beach, however, Johnson sent the fans home happy as he edged his compatriot Harrison in the final set to stem the tide and give the Breakers a big win.
Springfield Lasers @ PHILADELPHIA FREEDOMS, 7:00 PM EDT (LIVE ON ESPN3)
Wozniacki suits up for a second time with the Freedoms, who look to move to 3-0 on the season when they welcome in a Lasers team that’s searching for their first victory.
New York Empire @ WASHINGTON KASTLES, 7:00 PM EDT
Mylan WTT fan favorite Mardy Fish makes his return to the league for the first time in three years as he joins the Kastles -- his fourth WTT team -- for Tuesday’s meeting with the Empire at the Smith Center.
Orange County Breakers @ SAN DIEGO AVIATORS, 7:00 PM PDT
With the season series between California’s two clubs even at 1-1, the two teams will meet again in San Diego for the third of four meetings to open the season.