Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Wyoming
Top-Seeded `Dogs' Rally Comes Up Short Against Cowgirls
4/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
By Josh Mitchell
jomitchell@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- It took more than four hours to decide who was moving on to the Mountain West Championship, but on court six, Fresno State senior Anne Susdorf fell in gut-wrenching fashion as fifth-seeded Wyoming outlasted the top-seeded Fresno State women's tennis team, 4-3, in a semifinal marathon on Saturday at the McKinnon Family Tennis Center.
Susdorf was ironically the lone Bulldog that won her first set as the dual match saw every singles match go into a third set making it the first time in Mountain West Championship history, men's or women's, that all single matches have went into third sets.
"That was the best college tennis match I've seen in my years as a coach, we just unfortunately came out on the other end of it," head coach Ryan Stotland said.
Late in the third set at No. 6, Susdorf had a 6-5 lead and was serving for the match, but she was unable to put away Silviya Zhelyazkova as the two headed into a tiebreak. The Bulldog senior fell behind early and was not able to recover. After a sixth point by Zhelyazkova was questioned, Susdorf was overruled by the official, and due to it not being the first time in the match, Wyoming was award the clinching seventh point as the tiebreaker finished 7-3.
It was not the first time that the Bulldogs have fallen in the conference tournament on an overruling as the `Dogs were defeated 4-3 in the quarterfinals of the 2013 Mountain West Championships by Wyoming as the Cowgirls were awarded a match-clinching point.
Just to get to that pivotal point in the match, it took heroic effort from the Bulldogs as Wyoming controlled the dual match throughout the early going. Fresno State was able to strike first in doubles as Anneka and Sophie Watts claimed a 6-4 win at No. 2. Controlling their match at No. 3, Sofya Malysheva and Tanya Murtagh were unable to secure the opening for the `Dogs after the Cowgirls duo of Zhelyazkova and Dorottya Jonas fought off a double-match point to ultimately win 7-5 on court three.
With the doubles point hanging in the balance, Maiar and Rana Sherif Ahmed ended up in a tiebreak at No. 1 as the match went back and forth. Christa Gecheva and Alma Espinosa managed to outlast the `Dogs top duo 9-7 to give the Cowgirls what proved to a crucial opening point. It was just the second loss for the Bulldog sisters in dual matches this spring (20-2).
As singles began, Wyoming came out attacking, grabbing first-set wins on five of the six courts, including a pair of 7-6 results on the top two courts. Susdorf scored Fresno State's only first-set win, claiming it 6-4.
But as the second sets began, momentum began to shift as Aishwarya Agrawal and Anneka Watts began to pick up their play at No. 4 and No. 5. The seismic shift though came on court three. Having lost four of her last five matches entering the tournament, and falling 6-2 in the opening set, Rana Sherif Ahmed trailed 5-2 in the second set, but dug in and found her confidence. The junior staved off several match points and rallied to win 7-6(4).
The junior's energy began to rub off on teammates as the `Dogs began to show why they were the defending champions, eventually winning five of six second sets which forced matches on every court to go to a deciding a third set.
Before Rana could complete her match, Fresno State fell behind 3-0 as both Agrawal and Anneka Watts dropped their matches. Despite being on brink of defeat, Rana capped off her furious comeback with a 6-3 third-set win. Just minutes later, Maiar, who appeared to be feeding off of her older sister's performance as the two played beside one another, completed her comeback, 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-1.
With two matches remaining, Sophie Watts was the next to finish on court one. After dropping the opening set 7-6(9), the Mountain West Player of the Year responded with a 6-3 second-set win. In a tense back-and-forth final set with Magdalena Stencel that a large contingent of fans were glued to, Watts stayed calm despite unforced errors. She took a 6-5 lead before serving for the match and tying the dual match.
At 3-3, the dual match rested on Susdorf .The senior who injured her knee during the fall and was told by doctors that she wouldn't be able to walk until January, let alone play tennis by that time, entered today's match with a 14-3 record this spring, and was 10-1 at No. 6. Unfortunately for her and the `Dogs, it wasn't meant to be. After Wyoming was the awarded the match-clinching point on an overrule, the senior who gave this this year's team everything she had was visibly distraught.
By losing the doubles point, the Bulldogs are 0-4 this season when losing the opening point.
The loss was Fresno State fifth of the season as they hold an 18-5. Ranked No. 49 in this week's ITA rankings, the team will have to await the NCAA selection show on April 28 to see if the receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Ranked No. 75 in singles, Sophie Watts fill find out the following day if she will be selected to the tournament as an individual.
Wyoming vs Fresno State
Apr 25, 2015 at Albuquerque, NM
(McKinnon Family Tennis Stadium)
Wyoming 4, #49 Fresno State 3
Singles competition
1. #75 Sophie Watts (FS) def. STENCEL, Magdalena (WYO) 6-7 (9-11), 6-3, 7-5
2. Maiar Sherif Ahmed (FS) def. TOKAREVA, Nastya (WYO) 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 6-1
3. Rana Sherif Ahmed (FS) def. JONAS, Dorottya (WYO) 2-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
4. PARIZHER, Jessica (WYO) def. Aishwarya Agrawal (FS) 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
5. GECHEVA, Christa (WYO) def. Anneka Watts (FS) 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
6. ZHELYAZKOVA, Silviya (WYO) def. Anne Susdorf (FS) 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-3)
Doubles competition
1. GECHEVA, Christa/ESPINOSA, Alma (WYO) def. Maiar Sherif Ahmed/Rana Sherif Ahmed (FS) 7-6 (9-7)
2. Sophie Watts/Anneka Watts (FS) def. PARIZHER, Jessica/STENCEL, Magdalena (WYO) 6-4
3. ZHELYAZKOVA, Silviya/JONAS, Dorottya (WYO) def. Sofya Malysheva/Tanya Murtagh (FS) 7-5
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (4,5,2,3,1,6)
Players Mentioned
