LOS ANGELES - Maria Smith posted her team-leading 22nd singles win of the season, but it wasn't enough as No. 14/15 Cal lost at No. 16/23 USC, 6-1, on Friday afternoon at Marks Stadium.

This marked the Golden Bears' first Pac-12 loss of the season, as they now stand 3-1 in the conference. Cal is 9-4 overall, while USC improved to 13-2 (4-0 Pac-12).

In doubles, the Trojans won on court three (Smith and junior Katerina Stloukalova fell to USC's Salma Ewing and Constance Branstine, 6-2) and on court one (Cal's 13th-ranked Hana Mraz and Julia Rosenqvist lost to the 20th-ranked Rianna Valdes and Angela Kulikov, 6-3) to capture the point.
 
But then in singles, Smith defeated the 124th-ranked Danielle Wilson, 6-1, 6-2, at court five to tie the match at 1-1. Smith handed Wilson her first singles loss in dual-match play and also gave the Trojan just her second loss overall in singles this season.
 
That was also the only singles match to end in straight sets, as the other five went the distance, including on court three, on which 21st-ranked Cal senior Olivia Hauger, lost to Valdes, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2. Up 2-1, USC went ahead 3-1 when the 75th-ranked Kulikov topped the 74th-ranked Anna Bright on court two, 6-0, 1-6, 6-4. USC clinched the victory when Branstine beat Cal sophomore Hana Mraz, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, on court six to make the lead 4-1.
 
The teams played out the last two matches, with Stloukalova falling to USC's Ana Neffa on court four, 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-1, and then the 30th-ranked Rosenqvist losing to the 49th-ranked Ewing, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, on court one to end the contest.
 
"It was a really, really close match," Cal head coach Amanda Augustus said. "The 6-1 score doesn't indicate how close the match was, with five matches going to three sets. We didn't come out as aggressively as we needed to in the doubles. We started pretty slow in the singles, too, but I was glad to see us battle back and compete. A lot of those matches could've gone either way. I thought we competed well, but we'll have to make a few adjustments and be ready to go for tomorrow."
 
Cal next plays at No. 10/11 UCLA on Saturday at 12 p.m.