Colorado State University Athletics
Wednesday, February 26
Fort Collins, CO
12:00 PM
Colorado State
1
vs
5
Iowa State
Rams Continue to Use Building Points
2/26/2025 4:04:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Team takes doubles point in loss to No. 54 Iowa State
FORT COLLINS – Understandably, the team is no longer surprised.
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With each passing week, Colorado State's women's tennis team has dealt with injuries, more often than not finding itself down on the scoreboard before a dual starts. The schedule has been challenging enough, with Wednesday's 5-1 loss to No. 54 Iowa State at the Colorado State tennis complex being the fifth match against a team currently ranked in the top 75 by the ITA.
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In facing the Cyclones, the Rams were without Mariya Dobreva in the lineup – the latest in a long series of quirky setbacks for a team which is no longer wonder what will happen, just wondering when. Coach Mai-Ly Tran said her squad has just learned to roll with each change and focus on what lies ahead.
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Which is precisely how the Rams earned the doubles point on the day.
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With only two matches on the court, CSU needed both of them to earn the point, the second time the squad has earned one all year, both coming in the past three duals. After Diana Lizarazo and Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya wrapped up a 6-3 win at No. 2, the top team of Victoria Erechtchenko and Sarah Weekley were battling from an early 4-1 deficit.
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"I don't even know what the score was," Weekley said. "We just play point by point."
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As Weekley noted, the two were "forced" together in the fall, naturally, due to an injury. But they found success at a big event and have continued to move forward. Now 7-7 overall on the season, they are 4-3 together in the spring.
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In short, they have been a rare constant for Tran, which is the way she watched them perform on the day.
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"We are kind of late in the game with a couple of the teams, just to get them time together from our challenges. Vici and Sarah have been a steady team together since the fall, and they've complimented each other well," Tran said. "I think that helps, having more and more experience and them knowing each other and having confidence in each other. I think they're a really good pair.
Â
"That's what I was really impressed with was their composure. That's what I noticed, that they weren't playing the score. It was one break. What they play with is a relaxed intensity. You can just tell the way they were playing, they were play8iing like they were up. It was great to see them chip away and come back."
Â
With every doubles team, there is a period of growth in comfort, and Erechtchenko said it was no different from there. They knew each other as teammates, which is a step, but doesn't guarantee a working arrangement when sharing a court.
Â
So, they kept it simple. No expectations, she said. And, being a forced pairing, she said they were initially careful around each other, searching for the right thing to say which would be helpful. It worked.
Â
And so does having a plan. They were down, but Erechtchenko thought they had the right one in place.
Â
"We continued the same way. What we were doing … We weren't doing badly," she said. "If there are tiny things you have to fix, you don't change the entire tactic. I lost my service game in the beginning, but I kept doing the same thing afterward."
Â
The Cyclones came back to win each first set in the five singles matches contested, but the second sets were tighter. Zhadzinskaya, who dropped a 6-1 opener to Mari Paz Vilar, bounced back to take the second 6-4; they're match went unfinished. Weekley lost to No. 81 Anna Kuearum, 6-4, 6-3, serving out the final point after the match had been clinched for the final score.
Â
A break here, a key point there, Tran feels her team is moving in the right direction to flip the momentum in matches, even in the season.
Â
"We've had a lot of mini victories throughout all our matches. We're getting better in certain areas," she said. "When it comes to these team matches, everybody has to be playing well at the same time. Throughout each match, there are a lot of them having different types of victories. It's good to see people come back when they're down. We lost first sets over the weekend, but we played better in the second sets."
Â
In a season where the team has seen the unexpected become the expected, working toward a positive outlook and outcome is the constant the Rams are seeking to create.
Â
Â
With each passing week, Colorado State's women's tennis team has dealt with injuries, more often than not finding itself down on the scoreboard before a dual starts. The schedule has been challenging enough, with Wednesday's 5-1 loss to No. 54 Iowa State at the Colorado State tennis complex being the fifth match against a team currently ranked in the top 75 by the ITA.
Â
In facing the Cyclones, the Rams were without Mariya Dobreva in the lineup – the latest in a long series of quirky setbacks for a team which is no longer wonder what will happen, just wondering when. Coach Mai-Ly Tran said her squad has just learned to roll with each change and focus on what lies ahead.
Â
Which is precisely how the Rams earned the doubles point on the day.
Â
With only two matches on the court, CSU needed both of them to earn the point, the second time the squad has earned one all year, both coming in the past three duals. After Diana Lizarazo and Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya wrapped up a 6-3 win at No. 2, the top team of Victoria Erechtchenko and Sarah Weekley were battling from an early 4-1 deficit.
Â
"I don't even know what the score was," Weekley said. "We just play point by point."
Â
As Weekley noted, the two were "forced" together in the fall, naturally, due to an injury. But they found success at a big event and have continued to move forward. Now 7-7 overall on the season, they are 4-3 together in the spring.
Â
In short, they have been a rare constant for Tran, which is the way she watched them perform on the day.
Â
"We are kind of late in the game with a couple of the teams, just to get them time together from our challenges. Vici and Sarah have been a steady team together since the fall, and they've complimented each other well," Tran said. "I think that helps, having more and more experience and them knowing each other and having confidence in each other. I think they're a really good pair.
Â
"That's what I was really impressed with was their composure. That's what I noticed, that they weren't playing the score. It was one break. What they play with is a relaxed intensity. You can just tell the way they were playing, they were play8iing like they were up. It was great to see them chip away and come back."
Â
With every doubles team, there is a period of growth in comfort, and Erechtchenko said it was no different from there. They knew each other as teammates, which is a step, but doesn't guarantee a working arrangement when sharing a court.
Â
So, they kept it simple. No expectations, she said. And, being a forced pairing, she said they were initially careful around each other, searching for the right thing to say which would be helpful. It worked.
Â
And so does having a plan. They were down, but Erechtchenko thought they had the right one in place.
Â
"We continued the same way. What we were doing … We weren't doing badly," she said. "If there are tiny things you have to fix, you don't change the entire tactic. I lost my service game in the beginning, but I kept doing the same thing afterward."
Â
The Cyclones came back to win each first set in the five singles matches contested, but the second sets were tighter. Zhadzinskaya, who dropped a 6-1 opener to Mari Paz Vilar, bounced back to take the second 6-4; they're match went unfinished. Weekley lost to No. 81 Anna Kuearum, 6-4, 6-3, serving out the final point after the match had been clinched for the final score.
Â
A break here, a key point there, Tran feels her team is moving in the right direction to flip the momentum in matches, even in the season.
Â
"We've had a lot of mini victories throughout all our matches. We're getting better in certain areas," she said. "When it comes to these team matches, everybody has to be playing well at the same time. Throughout each match, there are a lot of them having different types of victories. It's good to see people come back when they're down. We lost first sets over the weekend, but we played better in the second sets."
Â
In a season where the team has seen the unexpected become the expected, working toward a positive outlook and outcome is the constant the Rams are seeking to create.
Â
Follow us at -- Twitter: @CSUTennis | Instagram: @csuramstennis | Facebook: @CSUTennis
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- RELENTLESS -
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- RELENTLESS -
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
1
Cris. Ramos Sierra/ Valeska San Martin [ISU]
WF
0
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
Anna Kuearum / 0 (81/-) [ISU]
66
43
#2 Singles Match
12
Julia Camblor / 0 [ISU]
76
54
#3 Singles Match
1234
Mari Paz Vilar / 0 [ISU]
642UF
161UF
#4 Singles Match
12
Suzanie Pretorius / 0 [ISU]
66
42
#5 Singles Match
12
Valeska San Martin / 0 [ISU]
66
30
#6 Singles Match
1
Gabriela Felix / 0 [ISU]
WF
0
Order of Finish:
5,4,1,2,6
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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