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Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, April 27
Las Vegas, NV
All Day
Colorado State
2
vs
4
No. 62 San Diego State
Tourney Run Ends in Semifinals Reboot
4/27/2024 12:15:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Seniors leave behind a solid foundation
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Individual results which lead to a team outcome can produce a bittersweet ending.
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Throw in match delayed to the next day, the emotions are more difficult to settle when the desired result is not in the cards.
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On one hand, Radka Buzkova was thrilled with her final matches in a Colorado State tennis uniform. She and her all-conference doubles partner Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya had helped secure the doubles point against San Diego State on Friday at the Darling Tennis Center. She then went out on her own and won a singles match against 98th-ranked Andjela Skrobonja 6-4, 6-4 later in the day. She bounced court to court cheering for her teammates before heavy rain delayed the outcome, pushing it to Saturday morning with the Rams trailing 3-2 but still in the hunt.
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The anticipation of what could turned into the sadness of what was as the No. 62 Aztecs closed out a 4-2 victory.
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"I feel really good, but it's kind of sad to end like that," Buzkova said. "I was feeling really good on the court, we won doubles, I won singles and we still lost. It stinks because I'm happy with the way we played but it's a conflicting sense.
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"It was great. We played a good match, and it was so close. Honestly, it could have gone both ways and that's tennis. Maybe if we played tomorrow, we'd win. That's sports. One day you play amazingly, the next day you're a little unlucky. It's a lesson for life. It's not going to go your way every time."
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Colorado State's season ended with an 11-12 dual mark, the third consecutive season with at least 10 wins. It was also the second trip to the Mountain West semifinals in three seasons under coach Mai-Ly Tran after the program had only been once prior.
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When the match was suspended Friday night, the Rams had No. 3 player Luana Avelar on the court down 3-2 to Myah Petchey, while Zhadzinskaya trailed Zoe Olmos 5-3 on the sixth line.
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Those were the facts the two took with them to the hotel to think about overnight.
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"Pressure wise, I was feeling fine because I had already played that girl. I had a plan going into it, and I feel less pressure when I'm ready," Avelar said. "It made me mad when we played the night session, because I've played at night very few times in my life. I had to concentrate on winning the match and not getting blinded by the lights.
Â
"I'm proud of everyone. I know everyone worked really hard and they all put up a fight. Not gonna lie, I definitely think we could have won, but we also have to think it's not all up to us, we also have an opponent who also wants to win. I'm really proud of the run we've made. We made it to the semifinals, and we played a tight match with SDSU. We showed everyone that the Rams are here to stay."
Â
Zhadzinskaya broke Olmos when play resumed, while at the same time Avelar won back-to-back games to seize a 4-3 advantage. Shortly after, Olmos broke back to secure the win for the Aztecs, who went on to face UNLV in the championship later in the day.
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Tran was impressed with the run the sixth-seeded Rams made in the tourney, starting with a clean sweep of Air Force the first day, followed by knocking off a Wyoming team which had beaten them less than a week prior.
Â
"The way we ended, obviously it hurts, because we're always trying to be the last team at the tournament, but I'm proud of just how they've overcome some of the challenges of the season. They believed in themselves, they stuck together and the way they supported each other," Tran said. "It's a super-special team. We've had some great memories and some heartbreak. This is what college tennis is about. We left it out there, we did our best and that's all I could ask for."
Â
The departure was hardest on the three players who finished their college careers, Buzkova, Zara Lennon and Sarka Richterova. Buzkova and Richterova came in together three years ago, former friends from the Czech Republic who reunited in Fort Collins. Lennon joined a year later, and the trio helped set a foundation which Tran is sure will carry forward.
Â
Their contribution is a bevy of wins and establishing expectations for the program.
Â
"They set a high standard we have for ourselves. Expectations to win the Mountain West," Tran said. "That's what we keep working for, and I think there's been a lot of success in everything we're doing. We're still striving for that conference championship, but they've elevated the level and shown what CSU is capable of in the Mountain West."
Â
Buzkova exits Colorado State as one of the best to ever don the green and gold. She was the program's lone selection to the 25th Anniversary Mountain West team, deemed one of the 25 best singles players in conference history, with good reason. She became the first Ram to be named All-Mountain West in both singles and doubles in three consecutive seasons. She holds the program record for most doubles wins in a season at 28, and also ranks second with a 26-victory campaign. Her 67 career doubles wins rank her second at CSU, her 65 career singles wins seventh. Her 19 singles wins at the No. 2 spot rank second, and her 32 doubles wins in duals sit ninth.
Â
Saturday, she remained consistent. Her results, as with all of her career accomplishments, were nice, but the team is what mattered most. She won't remember the numbers which have her name all over the record book.
Â
What she'll never forget is Fort Collins and her teammates.
Â
"The first year was really successful and the second year we got ranked. This year, we beat some good players and made it back to the semifinals," she said. "Two years ago was a different story; we lost pretty easily to them. This year was close, so maybe next year we get them. I don't really look at those things. I try to play my game. It's nice to hear the things I've achieved. It's nice seeing my name in the record book, but it's better to leave with the memories."
Â
Throw in match delayed to the next day, the emotions are more difficult to settle when the desired result is not in the cards.
Â
On one hand, Radka Buzkova was thrilled with her final matches in a Colorado State tennis uniform. She and her all-conference doubles partner Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya had helped secure the doubles point against San Diego State on Friday at the Darling Tennis Center. She then went out on her own and won a singles match against 98th-ranked Andjela Skrobonja 6-4, 6-4 later in the day. She bounced court to court cheering for her teammates before heavy rain delayed the outcome, pushing it to Saturday morning with the Rams trailing 3-2 but still in the hunt.
Â
The anticipation of what could turned into the sadness of what was as the No. 62 Aztecs closed out a 4-2 victory.
Â
"I feel really good, but it's kind of sad to end like that," Buzkova said. "I was feeling really good on the court, we won doubles, I won singles and we still lost. It stinks because I'm happy with the way we played but it's a conflicting sense.
Â
"It was great. We played a good match, and it was so close. Honestly, it could have gone both ways and that's tennis. Maybe if we played tomorrow, we'd win. That's sports. One day you play amazingly, the next day you're a little unlucky. It's a lesson for life. It's not going to go your way every time."
Â
Colorado State's season ended with an 11-12 dual mark, the third consecutive season with at least 10 wins. It was also the second trip to the Mountain West semifinals in three seasons under coach Mai-Ly Tran after the program had only been once prior.
Â
When the match was suspended Friday night, the Rams had No. 3 player Luana Avelar on the court down 3-2 to Myah Petchey, while Zhadzinskaya trailed Zoe Olmos 5-3 on the sixth line.
Â
Those were the facts the two took with them to the hotel to think about overnight.
Â
"Pressure wise, I was feeling fine because I had already played that girl. I had a plan going into it, and I feel less pressure when I'm ready," Avelar said. "It made me mad when we played the night session, because I've played at night very few times in my life. I had to concentrate on winning the match and not getting blinded by the lights.
Â
"I'm proud of everyone. I know everyone worked really hard and they all put up a fight. Not gonna lie, I definitely think we could have won, but we also have to think it's not all up to us, we also have an opponent who also wants to win. I'm really proud of the run we've made. We made it to the semifinals, and we played a tight match with SDSU. We showed everyone that the Rams are here to stay."
Â
Zhadzinskaya broke Olmos when play resumed, while at the same time Avelar won back-to-back games to seize a 4-3 advantage. Shortly after, Olmos broke back to secure the win for the Aztecs, who went on to face UNLV in the championship later in the day.
Â
Tran was impressed with the run the sixth-seeded Rams made in the tourney, starting with a clean sweep of Air Force the first day, followed by knocking off a Wyoming team which had beaten them less than a week prior.
Â
"The way we ended, obviously it hurts, because we're always trying to be the last team at the tournament, but I'm proud of just how they've overcome some of the challenges of the season. They believed in themselves, they stuck together and the way they supported each other," Tran said. "It's a super-special team. We've had some great memories and some heartbreak. This is what college tennis is about. We left it out there, we did our best and that's all I could ask for."
Â
The departure was hardest on the three players who finished their college careers, Buzkova, Zara Lennon and Sarka Richterova. Buzkova and Richterova came in together three years ago, former friends from the Czech Republic who reunited in Fort Collins. Lennon joined a year later, and the trio helped set a foundation which Tran is sure will carry forward.
Â
Their contribution is a bevy of wins and establishing expectations for the program.
Â
"They set a high standard we have for ourselves. Expectations to win the Mountain West," Tran said. "That's what we keep working for, and I think there's been a lot of success in everything we're doing. We're still striving for that conference championship, but they've elevated the level and shown what CSU is capable of in the Mountain West."
Â
Buzkova exits Colorado State as one of the best to ever don the green and gold. She was the program's lone selection to the 25th Anniversary Mountain West team, deemed one of the 25 best singles players in conference history, with good reason. She became the first Ram to be named All-Mountain West in both singles and doubles in three consecutive seasons. She holds the program record for most doubles wins in a season at 28, and also ranks second with a 26-victory campaign. Her 67 career doubles wins rank her second at CSU, her 65 career singles wins seventh. Her 19 singles wins at the No. 2 spot rank second, and her 32 doubles wins in duals sit ninth.
Â
Saturday, she remained consistent. Her results, as with all of her career accomplishments, were nice, but the team is what mattered most. She won't remember the numbers which have her name all over the record book.
Â
What she'll never forget is Fort Collins and her teammates.
Â
"The first year was really successful and the second year we got ranked. This year, we beat some good players and made it back to the semifinals," she said. "Two years ago was a different story; we lost pretty easily to them. This year was close, so maybe next year we get them. I don't really look at those things. I try to play my game. It's nice to hear the things I've achieved. It's nice seeing my name in the record book, but it's better to leave with the memories."
 Â
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Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,2,3
#1 Singles Match
12
21
Yasmine Kabbaj / 0 [SDSU]
66
#2 Singles Match
12
66
Andjela Skrobonja / 0 [SDSU]
44
#3 Singles Match
1234
3640
Myah Petchey / 0 [SDSU]
623UF
#4 Singles Match
12
34
Gloria Alogo / 0 [SDSU]
66
#5 Singles Match
12
03
Andreea Velcea / 0 [SDSU]
66
#6 Singles Match
123
364
Zoe Olmos / 0 [SDSU]
636
Order of Finish:
1,5,4,2,6
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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