Colorado State University Athletics
Friday, February 14
Fort Collins, CO
3:30 PM
Colorado State
1
vs
5
BYU
Rams Fall at Home in Weekend Opener
2/14/2025 7:44:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Tran sees positives in loss to BYU
FORT COLLINS – Bugs you try to shoo away. The injury bug just won't leave the team alone.
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Colorado State's women's tennis team has had to deal with forfeits during the spring, thanks to a rash of injuries which have hampered the squad. Friday's home title with BYU was no exception, the hosts surrendering one spot in the doubles lineup, one at the end of singles.
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What coach Mai-Ly Tran feels the team has done well is try to ignore the deficits on the scoreboard. What she feels they did better in the 5-1 loss to the Cougars was focus on their games and show improvement from the prior weekend.
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"I thought we showed a lot of improvement. We focused this week in practice, got the reps we needed and come out and play the way we want to play," Tran said. "We wanted to increase our shot tolerance, still be aggressive and play our type of tennis. Then it's believe they're capable of doing that.
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"Last weekend was a tough weekend for us, but we learned a lot from it. We really made some big adjustments, and I think it helped with training this week. You could see in different areas of different player's games they did a lot better today."
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The one who did it most effectively and had the results to back it was Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya at the No. 3 spot. The senior worked her way to a smooth 6-3, 6-2 victory over Madison Smith, finishing the match with an ace.
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For her, it was the direction of practices this week she put more into focus to reverse recent outcomes.
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"Our biggest focus this week was just staying disciplined, taking care of details," she said. "Just being greedy out there and not giving any points away. If the opponent takes it, they take it, but we didn't want to give up anything. I just worked on making more shots with the right opportunities and staying tough out there."
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While the victory came in straight sets, it was a match filled with tight points and key moments. In the end, she felt her mental approach carried her through to making the right shots when called upon.
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"I just think I stayed tougher and more intense, making more balls and making her play. I was really fighting and staying greedy," she said. "It's all the time, and obviously, you're going for your shots, trusting my game, and playing aggressive; that's my style. It's really just intuition. I think I was more aggressive at the right moments, and I was playing smarter."
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The win moved her to 8-7 on the season and evened it up at 2-all in spring duals. To Tran, there was persistence in her play which carried her through.
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The best part to the coach was watching the player put in the work and get an immediate payday.
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"There were long rallies, and she was fighting every single point, but she was still putting pressure on her opponent," Tran said. "She played really well today. It was fun to see her get some results so quickly after making the adjustment."
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Giving up points before a match starts is never ideal, but Tran said they don't talk about it and Zhadzinskaya said they don't think about it when a match starts. Full lineup or missing players, her belief is the team can win no matter the situation.
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Besides, Tran wants them focused on what they can control, which primarily is the way they play. Take the good and make it better, take the bad and work to turn it into a positive.
Â
She felt her Rams did it on Friday, an effort she expects to be exceeded when they travel to face Denver on Sunday (10 a.m.).
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Colorado State's women's tennis team has had to deal with forfeits during the spring, thanks to a rash of injuries which have hampered the squad. Friday's home title with BYU was no exception, the hosts surrendering one spot in the doubles lineup, one at the end of singles.
Â
What coach Mai-Ly Tran feels the team has done well is try to ignore the deficits on the scoreboard. What she feels they did better in the 5-1 loss to the Cougars was focus on their games and show improvement from the prior weekend.
Â
"I thought we showed a lot of improvement. We focused this week in practice, got the reps we needed and come out and play the way we want to play," Tran said. "We wanted to increase our shot tolerance, still be aggressive and play our type of tennis. Then it's believe they're capable of doing that.
Â
"Last weekend was a tough weekend for us, but we learned a lot from it. We really made some big adjustments, and I think it helped with training this week. You could see in different areas of different player's games they did a lot better today."
Â
The one who did it most effectively and had the results to back it was Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya at the No. 3 spot. The senior worked her way to a smooth 6-3, 6-2 victory over Madison Smith, finishing the match with an ace.
Â
For her, it was the direction of practices this week she put more into focus to reverse recent outcomes.
Â
"Our biggest focus this week was just staying disciplined, taking care of details," she said. "Just being greedy out there and not giving any points away. If the opponent takes it, they take it, but we didn't want to give up anything. I just worked on making more shots with the right opportunities and staying tough out there."
Â
While the victory came in straight sets, it was a match filled with tight points and key moments. In the end, she felt her mental approach carried her through to making the right shots when called upon.
Â
"I just think I stayed tougher and more intense, making more balls and making her play. I was really fighting and staying greedy," she said. "It's all the time, and obviously, you're going for your shots, trusting my game, and playing aggressive; that's my style. It's really just intuition. I think I was more aggressive at the right moments, and I was playing smarter."
Â
The win moved her to 8-7 on the season and evened it up at 2-all in spring duals. To Tran, there was persistence in her play which carried her through.
Â
The best part to the coach was watching the player put in the work and get an immediate payday.
Â
"There were long rallies, and she was fighting every single point, but she was still putting pressure on her opponent," Tran said. "She played really well today. It was fun to see her get some results so quickly after making the adjustment."
Â
Giving up points before a match starts is never ideal, but Tran said they don't talk about it and Zhadzinskaya said they don't think about it when a match starts. Full lineup or missing players, her belief is the team can win no matter the situation.
Â
Besides, Tran wants them focused on what they can control, which primarily is the way they play. Take the good and make it better, take the bad and work to turn it into a positive.
Â
She felt her Rams did it on Friday, an effort she expects to be exceeded when they travel to face Denver on Sunday (10 a.m.).
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- RELENTLESS -
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- RELENTLESS -
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
1
Madison Smith/ Elizabeth Tullis [BYU]
WF
0
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
Bobo Huang / 0 [BYU]
66
23
#2 Singles Match
12
Kendall Kovick / 0 [BYU]
67
15
#3 Singles Match
12
Madison Smith / 0 [BYU]
32
66
#4 Singles Match
12
Sue Yan Tan / 0 [BYU]
66
32
#5 Singles Match
1
Elizabeth Tullis / 0 [BYU]
WF
0
#6 Singles Match
1
TEAM / 0 [BYU]
UF
UF
Order of Finish:
1,3,2,4,5,6
Players Mentioned
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