Colorado State University Athletics
Sunday, January 26
Boulder, CO
2:00 PM
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Colorado
Rams Fall to Split Opening Weekend
1/26/2025 5:22:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Tran sees positives from first two matches
BOULDER – Always learning. Always advancing. The concept works for the individual as well as for a team.
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Colorado State's women's tennis squad dropped a 6-1 decision at Colorado on Sunday, leaving the team 1-1 after the opening weekend. Where it left coach Mai-Ly Tran was in a positive state of mind.
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"We knew these would be good matches to have under our belt. We were just discovering where we are in our first match, but also facing a tough opponent in CU, so this was a bigger test," Tran said. "I'm really pleased with the competitiveness from our entire team. It's exciting seeing how they performed. I think CU was better today, but for early days, I'm really excited about what this team is capable of achieving."
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Most of the losses at lines were filled with tight sets with the Buffs. Sarah Weekley went three sets at the top spot, and a couple of the straight-sets defeats came with a tiebreak or a victors pushed to the end. The lone victory came from freshman Mariya Dobreva at No. 5, taking down Pia Rebec 6-1, 6-4.
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Even in the second set, she was pushed, trailing 4-1 before winning the final five games. A reversal she said was due to something she learned recently.
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"You don't want to know what's happening in my head; I'm Eastern European. A lot of bad things said toward myself," Dobreva said with a grin. "I kid you not, a week and a half ago I flipped how I was thinking. We had a session with a psychologist, and he said something that stuck with me. I sat with him for 20 minutes and he legit read my mind. He knew what I was thinking on the court, and I couldn't even defend myself. And I love defending myself.
Â
"It was committing to the ball. That's legit what I did. I was still saying things to myself, but that's what I did. I turned thoughts around to be positive. Commitment. When I get on the baseline, whatever is in your head, the first thing, stick with it. I'm serving the T and I'm going forehand, and I stick with it. If you start thinking, you start doubting yourself. That's helped me, committing. Since he told me that, the first practice I started doing that, and things changed. And I will continue to do it because it's working in my favor."
Â
Dobreva, who won eight singles matches in the fall and has now posted a pair of victories to open the spring, has found college tennis is a breeding ground for leaning about the game level by level.
Â
She no longer worries about player rankings or any outside numbers, because what she found early is everybody is talented, every player is capable of winning. The biggest change is her standing on the court. She is no longer alone.
Â
Discipline and team carry weight.
Â
"When I first came in, I'm used to playing for myself only, coming in from the junior circuit and I had done some pro tournaments. You play for yourself," she said. "You win, you lose, you leave. In the fall I didn't understand that. The first matches, I was still thinking, as long as I do good, that's all that matters. There were some conversations with the girls. They told me, 'Mariya, you're not playing alone, it's everybody, it's not only you on the court. Everybody plays for everybody, and it's bigger than yourself. You're playing for Colorado State.'
Â
"I feel that helps me. For example, today, I was trying to encourage the other players on the court. Vici (Erechtchenko) and Logan (Voeks) were the closest, so I was cheering for them. Even though I was mad at myself, I was trying to make others positive around me."
Â
Mentally and physically is how a team moves forward, and despite the setback, Tran saw specific actions and reactions the team has been focusing on put to use on the court.
Â
In that regard, her reaction to the start of the season is onward and upward.
Â
"Just watching everything, we'll keep improving at a lot of things, but they're doing the right things. We just need matches," she said. "We need experience. Our time to peak is in April, but they're doing the right things. And for them to buy into that is exciting.
Â
"They've improved with the things we've worked on mentally, and physically, that comes with training and reps. They've taken some tools we've learned and implemented them quickly and that will help us in the long run."
Â
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Colorado State's women's tennis squad dropped a 6-1 decision at Colorado on Sunday, leaving the team 1-1 after the opening weekend. Where it left coach Mai-Ly Tran was in a positive state of mind.
Â
"We knew these would be good matches to have under our belt. We were just discovering where we are in our first match, but also facing a tough opponent in CU, so this was a bigger test," Tran said. "I'm really pleased with the competitiveness from our entire team. It's exciting seeing how they performed. I think CU was better today, but for early days, I'm really excited about what this team is capable of achieving."
Â
Most of the losses at lines were filled with tight sets with the Buffs. Sarah Weekley went three sets at the top spot, and a couple of the straight-sets defeats came with a tiebreak or a victors pushed to the end. The lone victory came from freshman Mariya Dobreva at No. 5, taking down Pia Rebec 6-1, 6-4.
Â
Even in the second set, she was pushed, trailing 4-1 before winning the final five games. A reversal she said was due to something she learned recently.
Â
"You don't want to know what's happening in my head; I'm Eastern European. A lot of bad things said toward myself," Dobreva said with a grin. "I kid you not, a week and a half ago I flipped how I was thinking. We had a session with a psychologist, and he said something that stuck with me. I sat with him for 20 minutes and he legit read my mind. He knew what I was thinking on the court, and I couldn't even defend myself. And I love defending myself.
Â
"It was committing to the ball. That's legit what I did. I was still saying things to myself, but that's what I did. I turned thoughts around to be positive. Commitment. When I get on the baseline, whatever is in your head, the first thing, stick with it. I'm serving the T and I'm going forehand, and I stick with it. If you start thinking, you start doubting yourself. That's helped me, committing. Since he told me that, the first practice I started doing that, and things changed. And I will continue to do it because it's working in my favor."
Â
Dobreva, who won eight singles matches in the fall and has now posted a pair of victories to open the spring, has found college tennis is a breeding ground for leaning about the game level by level.
Â
She no longer worries about player rankings or any outside numbers, because what she found early is everybody is talented, every player is capable of winning. The biggest change is her standing on the court. She is no longer alone.
Â
Discipline and team carry weight.
Â
"When I first came in, I'm used to playing for myself only, coming in from the junior circuit and I had done some pro tournaments. You play for yourself," she said. "You win, you lose, you leave. In the fall I didn't understand that. The first matches, I was still thinking, as long as I do good, that's all that matters. There were some conversations with the girls. They told me, 'Mariya, you're not playing alone, it's everybody, it's not only you on the court. Everybody plays for everybody, and it's bigger than yourself. You're playing for Colorado State.'
Â
"I feel that helps me. For example, today, I was trying to encourage the other players on the court. Vici (Erechtchenko) and Logan (Voeks) were the closest, so I was cheering for them. Even though I was mad at myself, I was trying to make others positive around me."
Â
Mentally and physically is how a team moves forward, and despite the setback, Tran saw specific actions and reactions the team has been focusing on put to use on the court.
Â
In that regard, her reaction to the start of the season is onward and upward.
Â
"Just watching everything, we'll keep improving at a lot of things, but they're doing the right things. We just need matches," she said. "We need experience. Our time to peak is in April, but they're doing the right things. And for them to buy into that is exciting.
Â
"They've improved with the things we've worked on mentally, and physically, that comes with training and reps. They've taken some tools we've learned and implemented them quickly and that will help us in the long run."
Â
Follow us at -- Twitter: @CSUTennis | Instagram: @csuramstennis | Facebook: @CSUTennis
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- STALWART -
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- STALWART -
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
123
263
Aya El Sayed / 0 [CU]
636
#2 Singles Match
12
21
Mila Stanojevic / 0 [CU]
66
#3 Singles Match
12
64
Betina Tokac / 0 [CU]
76
#4 Singles Match
12
54
Ema Bubalo / 0 [CU]
76
#5 Singles Match
12
66
Pia Rebec / 0 [CU]
14
#6 Singles Match
12
10
Lera Alexin / 0 [CU]
66
Order of Finish:
2,5,3,4,1,6
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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