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Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, March 23
Fort Collins, CO
11:00 AM
Colorado State
4
vs
1
Utah State
Rams Build Into Conference Win
3/23/2024 2:58:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Lennon continues roll against Utah State
As nice as it is for a player to feel they're in a groove, it's almost a more uplifting sensation when they feel they are turning a corner.
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Colorado State's women's tennis team felt all of the emotions in Saturday's home Mountain West dual with Utah State, getting wins from players who have been on a roll and others who have riding the roller coaster of the season in a 4-1 victory over the Aggies. Colorado State evened its mark overall at 6-6, moving to 2-1 in conference play.
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The stage was set when the Rams rallied on the second court with Zara Lennon and Sarah Weekley taking a 6-4 decision to break the tie and capture the doubles point for the hosts. Lennon then continued to roll as a solo act, producing an impressive straight-sets win over Zeynep Ozturk, 6-3, 6-1.
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The Rams would win the necessary singles matches to take the dual, as Sarka Richterova drew the match even at 1 with her win at No. 5, with Sarah Weekley closing out the festivities at No. 4. Like Lennon, both won in straight sets.
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Lennon has now won all three of her conference matches and is 7-2 in her past nine decisions, moving to 14-5 on the campaign. She's 4-1 at the top spot (matching what she was at No. 2) and has played with confidence all season. For Saturday's assignment, she tapped into what she's been doing for the past few weeks.
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Carryover helps.
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"I feel like I'm in a good groove. We've changed indoors/outdoors and everything, but I'm feeling my tennis and I'm enjoying being on the court," Lennon said. "That's the most important thing for me at this point. I think it's just good confidence knowing my game plans, knowing my strength and feeling like I'm able to use it. I just feel like I'm carrying confidence toward the next match, which is a good thing."
Â
Getting the big win at No. 2 doubles helped her mood, but the graduate student said the two tasks require a different approach, so that's not necessarily as big of a boost as the way she's been feeling on the court as a solo act.
Â
To be locked in requires altered states of mind when stepping on the court by herself or with a partner.
Â
"I feel like I have to flip into a different mindset," Lennon said. "Doubles, I tend to enjoy more and have more fun with it. In singles, I kind of have to lock in and play. I'm focused in doubles, but it's a different type of focus. It helps to win in doubles going into season, but in singles, I need a different type of focus."
Having focus is necessary, but a mental break is also helpful, and those come throughout the day from various points at the venue.
Â
Out of the blue a player will hear, "set Rams on 4," or "match Rams on 5." It's a boost for all of them, either hearing it or being able to shout it out. For Richterova, both feel pretty good and serve two distinct purposes.
Â
"It's great. If you feel like you're teammates are doing well, it just puts pressure on them," Richterova said. "It helps with the energy a lot, and the momentum. If you're really close and the opponent hears something from the outer courts, they feel a little more pressure."
Â
What felt best for the graduate student was the way she took control of her match in the first set with Magdelena Nunez Pureco, then completely took over in the second to close out a 6-4, 6-1 victory, the first for the Rams on the day at singles.
Â
Gaining consistency in her play has been a chore for her this season, but Saturday was definitely a step in the right direction. Even better, she only needed two sets, not three, to close it out. With a career coming to a close, she felt her mental outlook at the start played more of a role in the decision than her physical play.
Â
"It feels so nice. It's just relieving because obviously I always want to do good, and when it's not going my way, I can get into overthinking and not having too much confidence," Richterova said. "This match is just bringing back why I play tennis. If you feel like that, it just gives you so much joy.
Â
"I feel like I did a good job of making her tired, getting a bit more tired and making more mistakes. I was getting more and more confident."
Â
Radka Buzkova and Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya posted a 6-2 win at No. 1 as they've swept through conference decisions this season. It marked the 60th career victory for Buzkova at doubles, moving her into a tie for second on the program list.
Â
For CSU coach Mai-Ly Tran, seeing both ends of the spectrum for her players brings joy in different ways.
Â
To reach the point where Lennon is at, a player like Richterova needs to take that first step forward. It wasn't just Richterova, either, as Weekley has had her challenges as of late. Her 6-3, 7-5 win over Indya Nespor was another boost for the player, and in turn, the team.
Â
"I'm extremely proud of how they approached this match after a tough loss on the road. The players who haven't been feeling as confident, they stuck with it, believe in themselves and really were able to bounce back today," Tran said. "We've been confident at the top of our lineup, but there are some key players we need. Doubles was crucial for us, and also those players who just need to get going."
Â
Throughout the spring, Tran has been pleased with the energy the team has brough into every match, but she knows it amps up just a bit against conference foes. The overall record is important, but the conference marks carry more weight as those are the finals which determine seeding for the conference tournament at the end of April in Las Vegas.
Â
The players feel it as well, so picking up a win was vital, doing it at home made it even better.
Â
Feeling like everything is moving forward in a positive manner, well, that's even better. The Rams will put it to the test Sunday (12 p.m.) when they host Boise State at the Fort Collins Country Club.
Â
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Colorado State's women's tennis team felt all of the emotions in Saturday's home Mountain West dual with Utah State, getting wins from players who have been on a roll and others who have riding the roller coaster of the season in a 4-1 victory over the Aggies. Colorado State evened its mark overall at 6-6, moving to 2-1 in conference play.
Â
The stage was set when the Rams rallied on the second court with Zara Lennon and Sarah Weekley taking a 6-4 decision to break the tie and capture the doubles point for the hosts. Lennon then continued to roll as a solo act, producing an impressive straight-sets win over Zeynep Ozturk, 6-3, 6-1.
Â
The Rams would win the necessary singles matches to take the dual, as Sarka Richterova drew the match even at 1 with her win at No. 5, with Sarah Weekley closing out the festivities at No. 4. Like Lennon, both won in straight sets.
Â
Lennon has now won all three of her conference matches and is 7-2 in her past nine decisions, moving to 14-5 on the campaign. She's 4-1 at the top spot (matching what she was at No. 2) and has played with confidence all season. For Saturday's assignment, she tapped into what she's been doing for the past few weeks.
Â
Carryover helps.
Â
"I feel like I'm in a good groove. We've changed indoors/outdoors and everything, but I'm feeling my tennis and I'm enjoying being on the court," Lennon said. "That's the most important thing for me at this point. I think it's just good confidence knowing my game plans, knowing my strength and feeling like I'm able to use it. I just feel like I'm carrying confidence toward the next match, which is a good thing."
Â
Getting the big win at No. 2 doubles helped her mood, but the graduate student said the two tasks require a different approach, so that's not necessarily as big of a boost as the way she's been feeling on the court as a solo act.
Â
To be locked in requires altered states of mind when stepping on the court by herself or with a partner.
Â
"I feel like I have to flip into a different mindset," Lennon said. "Doubles, I tend to enjoy more and have more fun with it. In singles, I kind of have to lock in and play. I'm focused in doubles, but it's a different type of focus. It helps to win in doubles going into season, but in singles, I need a different type of focus."
Having focus is necessary, but a mental break is also helpful, and those come throughout the day from various points at the venue.
Â
Out of the blue a player will hear, "set Rams on 4," or "match Rams on 5." It's a boost for all of them, either hearing it or being able to shout it out. For Richterova, both feel pretty good and serve two distinct purposes.
Â
"It's great. If you feel like you're teammates are doing well, it just puts pressure on them," Richterova said. "It helps with the energy a lot, and the momentum. If you're really close and the opponent hears something from the outer courts, they feel a little more pressure."
Â
What felt best for the graduate student was the way she took control of her match in the first set with Magdelena Nunez Pureco, then completely took over in the second to close out a 6-4, 6-1 victory, the first for the Rams on the day at singles.
Â
Gaining consistency in her play has been a chore for her this season, but Saturday was definitely a step in the right direction. Even better, she only needed two sets, not three, to close it out. With a career coming to a close, she felt her mental outlook at the start played more of a role in the decision than her physical play.
Â
"It feels so nice. It's just relieving because obviously I always want to do good, and when it's not going my way, I can get into overthinking and not having too much confidence," Richterova said. "This match is just bringing back why I play tennis. If you feel like that, it just gives you so much joy.
Â
"I feel like I did a good job of making her tired, getting a bit more tired and making more mistakes. I was getting more and more confident."
Â
Radka Buzkova and Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya posted a 6-2 win at No. 1 as they've swept through conference decisions this season. It marked the 60th career victory for Buzkova at doubles, moving her into a tie for second on the program list.
Â
For CSU coach Mai-Ly Tran, seeing both ends of the spectrum for her players brings joy in different ways.
Â
To reach the point where Lennon is at, a player like Richterova needs to take that first step forward. It wasn't just Richterova, either, as Weekley has had her challenges as of late. Her 6-3, 7-5 win over Indya Nespor was another boost for the player, and in turn, the team.
Â
"I'm extremely proud of how they approached this match after a tough loss on the road. The players who haven't been feeling as confident, they stuck with it, believe in themselves and really were able to bounce back today," Tran said. "We've been confident at the top of our lineup, but there are some key players we need. Doubles was crucial for us, and also those players who just need to get going."
Â
Throughout the spring, Tran has been pleased with the energy the team has brough into every match, but she knows it amps up just a bit against conference foes. The overall record is important, but the conference marks carry more weight as those are the finals which determine seeding for the conference tournament at the end of April in Las Vegas.
Â
The players feel it as well, so picking up a win was vital, doing it at home made it even better.
Â
Feeling like everything is moving forward in a positive manner, well, that's even better. The Rams will put it to the test Sunday (12 p.m.) when they host Boise State at the Fort Collins Country Club.
Â
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1,2
#1 Singles Match
12
OZTURK, Z. / 0 [USU]
31
66
#2 Singles Match
123
HILARIO, L. / 0 [USU]
53UF
720
#3 Singles Match
123
KUNG, L. / 0 [USU]
620
672UF
#4 Singles Match
12
NESPOR, I. / 0 [USU]
35
67
#5 Singles Match
12
PURECO, M. / 0 [USU]
41
66
#6 Singles Match
12
KUKRETI, N. / 0 [USU]
66
11
Order of Finish:
6,5,1,4
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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