A 3-1 deficit.
Temperatures reaching almost 90 degrees.
A four-hour match.
No big deal for Olivia Center, who was entering the third set in the deciding match at line five. Her focus was on finding joy in the competition and fighting for each point, she said.
“Playing each point in front of me as if it was the only one in the world that mattered,” Center said.
Center’s clinching win fueled No. 18 UCLA women’s tennis (17-7, 9-4 Big Ten) to a 4-3 win over Mountain West champs No. 51 San Diego State (21-4, 10-1 Mountain West) Friday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
The victory was tighter than UCLA’s 5-2 win against SDSU to open the dual match season. In fact, the Bruins never led until Center’s win.
SDSU battled through tight matches at one and three doubles to secure the doubles point – an unusual feat against the Bruins.
While freshman duo Mayu Crossley and Kayla Chung had previously defeated Gloria Alogo and Liisa Varul 6-4, the repaired combo of Chung and junior Ahmani Guichard fell short 7-5.
Sophomores No. 24 Center and Kate Fakih lost in a set tiebreaker 7-6 (7-3) at court one to Jo-Yee Chan and Vessa Turley, a matchup they had previously won 6-4. Senior Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer and Crossley ended all square 6-6 (3-3) in a tiebreaker against Jayna Clemens and Ninon Martinache that went unfinished.
“Losing the doubles point makes a huge difference,” Center said. “We knew that we had to lock in extra. For me, it made me a little bit hungrier.”
Coach Stella Sampras Webster said the energy SDSU brought to doubles impressed her.
“I have to give them a lot of credit,” she said. “They came out with a ton of energy and were playing just some great tennis and doubles and really took it to us.”
Sampras Webster added that SDSU swung through the balls and was rewarded for its risky shots while the Bruins played a little tighter, a disadvantage in such a short set.
The energy shifted in the first singles match, though. Freshman No. 34 Crossley opened out singles play with a dominant win over Martinache, bageling her in the second set 6-3, 6-0.
The Bruins followed Crossley’s win with two losses, one at line one where SDSU’s Chan defeated Lutkemeyer 7-5, 6-3 and one at line three with Alogo besting Fakih 7-5, 6-0.
Sampras Webster said SDSU has seen major growth throughout its season, improving dramatically since the last matchup.
SDSU now led 3-1. All it needed was one more win to extend its season and send UCLA home.
But not if Guichard and junior Bianca Fernandez had anything to say about it.
Guichard fought through a three-set marathon match for a 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 win against Teja Tirunelveli, who is no stranger to the Arizona heat or elevation, having played two years for Arizona.
Fernandez also pulled through to tie up the score in another three-set endurance battle with Clemens, despite losing the second set in a tiebreaker. The junior, who was the only Bruin that was not coming off a doubles set, beat Clemens 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6-2 to keep her team alive.
Fernandez said that a lot of prematch preparation went into her win – both physically and mentally. She added that she does not focus on how her opponent will play but instead prioritizes what she can control.
“The coaches have full faith in who I am and how I play,” she said. “So preparing, it was mostly like a mental preparation for me. Come in pretty strong mentally, move on and just keep playing.”
Fernandez said she had to hold onto that focus throughout her match because of what she described as “unsportsmanlike conduct” from her opponent.
She said that watching Center secure the team win filled her with pride, adding that she had a gut feeling Center would secure the win after watching Center’s first shot of the last point.
“I knew she was going to win, and I was right,” she said. “We were already running.”
Center and Sampras Webster both said the Bruins struggled adjusting to the altitude and the change in ball flight. At higher altitudes, tennis balls fly faster and travel further due to thinner air and less resistance.
Center said she had a harder time playing Vesa Gjinaj – whom she previously beat in straight sets 6-1 6-4 – in the new conditions.
“She hits a good, heavy ball and I think her balls were just bouncing super high, and it was hard for me to be as aggressive with it,” Center said. “She competed really hard, she played a good match, and she got to every ball and didn’t make a lot of unforced errors.”
UCLA will aim to continue its bid for a national championship when it faces regional host No. 16 Arizona State on Saturday at noon in the second round of the tournament.
Sampras Webster said the team that will prevail tomorrow will be the one that is able to persevere through playing back-to-back matches in the heat.
“At this point, it’s going to be who has the guts and who has the fitness,” she said.
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