PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – Denise Starr ended her stay at the Riviera ITA All-American Championships with a victory on Wednesday. The California senior, who's ranked 62nd, upset TCU's 57th-ranked Donika Bashota, 6-4, 6-2, in the round of 16 of the qualifying singles back draw at the Riviera Tennis Club.
 
The back draw ended with that round.
 
Over her two days at the All-American, Starr lost in her qualifying singles opener on Tuesday against Alabama's 33rd-ranked and sixth-seeded Andie Daniell, 6-3, 7-5, defeated Wichita State's 74th-ranked Gabriela Porubin, 6-4, 6-1, in the back-draw opener and added a win over another nationally ranked opponent on Wednesday.
 
"She built off of her momentum from last weekend," said Cal head coach Amanda Augustus of Starr's performance at the recent Cal Nike Fall Invitational. "Denise did a really good job at this tournament of getting a couple of really high-quality singles wins. We were pretty familiar with Bashota from when she played at Washington State. We knew what to expect. Each match Denise played, she got better and better. We're excited to see what she'll be able to do the rest of the fall season nationally."
 
Bashota previously played two seasons for fellow Pac-12 Conference team Washington State. She had played against Cal before, though not against Starr until Wednesday.
 
"I was kind of familiar with her," Starr said. "Amanda knew what to do against her, and she helped me out with that. I came out like any other match, tried to feel her out in the warm up and the first game or two, then I played my game. It turned out well today."
 
The Cal veteran used the early season tournament to work on her game, specifically on her "serve and coming to the net, being more aggressive," Starr said. "Those are big parts of my game and things I try to improve on every match."
 
The Bears will next compete in the Saint Mary's Fall Invitational from Friday through Sunday in Moraga, California.