Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
SMU <BR>(WAC Tournament)
Fresno State Wins Third Consecutive WAC Title
5/2/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
May 2, 2004
FRESNO, Calif. - For Fresno State head coach Simon Thibodeau and the rest of the Bulldogs, just because it was expected made it no less sweet.
Ranked 15th in the nation, seeded first in the draw and entering as the overwhelming favorite to win its third consecutive WAC Tournament, Fresno State did just that by defeating No. 42 SMU 4-2 on Sunday at the Jake Hess Tennis Center in Houston.
The win garners the Bulldogs (20-3) an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament, which begins May 14 or 15 at various campus sites around the nation. It also makes them the first team since BYU in the mid-1990's to claim more than two league crowns in a row. The Cougars won four in a row from 1993-96.
It also was Fresno State's 16th win in a row against a WAC opponent and 14th in 15 matches overall.
The WAC championship trophy wasn't the only hardware the Bulldogs will bring home with them on the plane ride back to Fresno on Sunday night. Jelena Pandzic was named WAC Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and first-team All-WAC in both singles and doubles. Lucia Tallo, a junior who has won a WAC title in each of her three years, joined Pandzic on the singles and doubles All-WAC first team, and Katharina Winterhalter was named second-team All-WAC in singles. Winterhalter and partner Lucia Sainz were both second-team honorees in doubles.
A Bulldog has now won the WAC Player of the Year four consecutive years. Other Fresno State players to earn the award are Liesl Fichtbauer (2001), Kim Niggemeyer (2002) and Chloe Carlotti (2003).
Thibodeau, who is in his first year as a collegiate head coach after taking over Fresno State on an interim basis in September when former coach Kevin Epley departed to take over at William and Mary, was named the WAC Coach of the Year.
Epley had also won honors as the league's top coach in 2001 and '02 before Thibodeau accomplished the feat this season.
"This is a very special moment for all of us," said interim head coach Simon Thibodeau. "To win a WAC title is a great accomplishment, but to win three in a row like this program has done is really something. It wasn't easy, but when it came time to make big shots, we were very tough today."
Against the Mustangs (17-10), Fresno State started by winning the doubles, something it has now done in 19 of its 23 matches this season. Getting a win on the board quickly was the team of Sainz and Winterhalter at No. 2, who improved to 22-6 (14-5 dual) with an easy 8-1 victory over Lynsie Jones and Nadia Vaughan. The 24th-ranked tandem of Pandzic and Tallo clinched the doubles point with an 8-5 win at No. 1 over Kit Carson and Jenny Langer.
The victory by Pandzic and Tallo continued their highly successful 2004 campaign that has seen them go 18-2 and post 13 consecutive wins. The duo hasn't lost since falling 9-8 (7) to top-ranked Erin Burdette and Lauren Barnikow of Stanford on March 1.
In singles, the 16th-ranked Pandzic put the Bulldogs ahead 2-0 when she made short work of No. 74 Svetlana Kouzmenko 6-1, 6-4 at No. 1. Moments later at No. 6, Courtney Jantz put Fresno State on the cusp of the WAC title with a 6-2, 6-2 triumph over Halley Rambally.
 Interim head coach Simon Thibodeau was named WAC Coach of the Year after Fresno State won the league title over SMU.  | |
But the conference title wouldn't come easy. The Mustangs picked up singles wins at Nos. 3 and 4 when Langer stunned Winterhalter, the team's winningest singles player, with a 6-2, 6-3 decision. The lead was trimmed to 3-2 when Vaughan knocked off Vlatka Jovanovic 1-6, 6-0, 6-1.
But that's when Sainz, who had failed to finish either of her singles matches against San Jose State or Rice, stepped to the forefront. After letting a match point in the second set slip through her fingers, the sophomore regrouped in the third set to knock off Jones, who played for Fresno State during the 2000-01 season, 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-4, sending the Bulldogs into celebration.
"Lucky (Lucia Sainz) was a little down because she hadn't finished a match yet here at the WAC yet, so I told her she was going to be the player who clinched today, and sure enough she did," Thibodeau said. "I don't think any of us are surprised she would step up and win a big match like this. She is that type of player."
At the time of Sainz's match-clinching win, Tallo at No. 2 was ahead match point at 7-6 (4), 5-4 against Carson.
For Fresno State, the win was yet another reminder of the dominating second half of the season the team has enjoyed. Save for a 6-1 hiccup at Sacramento State on April 11, the Bulldogs have not lost since March 1, a defeat at the hands of No. 1 Stanford. In fact, other than that loss to the Hornets, Fresno State has not lost to anyone outside of the top 10 in the national rankings.
The Bulldogs also boast victories over No. 12 Tulane, No. 13 California and No. 24 TCU.
Fresno State now awaits its NCAA Tournament fate, which will be revealed Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. PT on ESPN News. The first and second rounds of the NCAA's, which take place May 14-16, are played at various campus sites, while the round of 16 through the national championship match, played May 20-23, will be hosted by the University of Georgia.
Due to their No. 15 ranking, the Bulldogs are one of the teams being considered to host a regional.
No. 15 Fresno State def. No. 42 SMU, 4-2
Doubles (Fresno State wins point)
1) #24 Pandzic/Tallo (FS) def. Carson/Langer (SMU), 8-5
2) Winterhalter/Sainz (FS) def. Jones/Vaughan (SMU), 8-1
3) Jantz/Jovanovic (FS) vs. Kouzmenko/Leuszler (SMU), did not finish
Singles
1) #16 Jelena Pandzic (FS) def. #74 Svetlana Kouzmenko (SMU), 6-1, 6-4
2) #84 Lucia Tallo (FS) vs. Kit Carson (SMU), 7-6 (4), 5-4 - abandoned
3) Jenny Langer (SMU) def. Katharina Winterhalter (FS), 6-2, 6-3
4) Nadia Vaughan (SMU) def. Vlatka Jovanovic (FS), 1-6, 6-0, 6-1
5) Lucia Sainz (FS) def. Lynsie Jones (SMU), 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-4
6) Courtney Jantz (FS) def. Halley Rambally (SMU), 6-2, 6-2
Records: Fresno State (20-3); SMU (17-10)
