April 30, 2017
Las Vegas, Nev.----- San Jose State University overcame a one-match deficit in doubles against host UNLV to win the team doubles point and went on to win three straight-set singles matches and capture the 2017 Mountain West Women's Tennis Championship.
The Spartans (14-7) defeated the Rebels (18-8), 4-0. UNLV was the defending Mountain West champion.
Seniors Marine Dans and Gaelle Rey powered San Jose State to the championship first combining to win at #2 doubles, 7-5 over Carol Yang and Cristina Moroi giving San Jose State a 1-0 lead. Dans put the Spartans ahead 2-0 with her 6-2, 6-1 straight-set win over Anna Bogoslavets at #3-singles. Rey's 6-4, 6-3 singles win over Jovana Kenic at #6 ignited the San Jose State championship celebration.
"This was the best match of my season. In my head, I was thinking it was the last match of my (college) career," said Dans about her singles win over Bogoslavets, whom she had lost to twice in previous singles matches. "I was being aggressive moving her around and trying to finish points. All my shots were good (today). I was just on it.
"You really have to play your best match to beat her."
In between Dans and Rey's singles wins, Sybille Gauvain, ranked #100 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's singles national rankings, defeated Carol Yang, 6-3, 6-2. Yang is ranked #48 nationally and beat Gauvain during regular-season action in San Jose, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
Gauvain's victory was her 100th in singles and doubles at San Jose State. She is the fourth player on this year's team with at least 100 career victories.
"We got down really fast in all three doubles matches," said San Jose State head coach Chad Skorupka. "We needed to be more patient, stay in points longer and get in our groove." Gauvain and partner Marie Klocker lost their match at #1-doubles, but the Spartans' #3-doubles pair of Tamara Culibrk and Miyo Kobayashi gave San Jose State their first win in the two-out-of-three format. Both scores were 6-3.
Dans and Rey were tied 4-4 with Yang and Cristina Moroi, lost serve to trail, 5-4, but went on to win the next three games for a 7-5 final and the lead heading into singles.
"We had to refocus. We told ourselves now is the time and we were on it," Dans said about trailing in her doubles match with Rey. "We became more motivated to win. We said, 'Let's be aggressive and finish points' and that's what we did."
"They (UNLV) thought they had the (doubles) point wrapped up and that deflated them (heading into singles)," the Spartans' head coach said about the momentum swing.
San Jose State will be making its second appearance in a NCAA Women's Tennis Championship. The first was in 2013. The Spartans will learn their next opponent, on Tuesday, May 2, 2:30 p.m. (PT) during the NCAA Women's Tennis Selection Show on www.ncaa.com.
San Jose State University women's tennis
Mountain West Women's Tennis Championship
San Jose State vs. UNLV
Fertitta Tennis Complex, Las Vegas, Nev.
April 30, 2017
| Final Score: San Jose State (SJSU) 4, UNLV 0. |
| Doubles |
| Aiwen Zhu & En-Pei Huang (UNLV) def. Sybille Gauvain & Marie Klocker (SJSU), 6-3 |
| Marine Dans & Gaelle Rey (SJSU) def. Carol Yang & Cristina Moroi (UNLV), 7-5 |
| Tamara Culibrk & Miyo Kobayashi (SJSU) def. Paola Artiga & Anna Bogoslavets (UNLV), 6-3 |
| Order of finish -- 3, 1, 2 |
| Singles |
| #100 Sybille Gauvain (SJSU) def. #48 Carol Yang (UNLV) 6-3, 6-2 |
| Marie Klocker (SJSU) vs. Aiwen Zhu (UNLV) 3-6, 6-3, 1-1 unfinished |
| Marine Dans (SJSU) def. Anna Bogoslavets (UNLV), 6-2, 6-1 |
| Tamara Culibrk (SJSU) vs. En-Pei Huang (UNLV), 5-7, 3-5 unfinished |
| Miyo Kobayashi (SJSU) vs. Paola Artiga (UNLV), 4-6, 4-5 unfinished |
| Gaelle Rey (SJSU) def. Jovana Kenic (UNLV) 6-4, 6-3 |
| Order of finish -- 3, 1, 6 |