April 10, 2011
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - San Diego State moved to 5-0 in the Mountain West Conference after defeating No. 61 TCU, 5-2, Sunday morning in Albuquerque, N.M. The Aztecs, who lost the doubles point, rallied for the win and improved to 14-7 on the season. SDSU has now won 10 of its last 11 matches.
As previously mentioned the Aztecs lost the doubles point, but for the first time in 2011, they rallied from the deficit and posted the win. The Horned Frogs earned the point by beating San Diego State's two nationally ranked duos in No. 51 Roxanne Ellison and Sierra Ellison, and No. 74 Alicia Aguilar and Julia Wais.
At No. 1, Maria Babanova and Katariina Tuohimaa pulled out the tough 9-8 victory over the Ellison tandem, while Idunn Hertzberg and Gaby Mastromarino downed Aguilar and Wais at the second position, 8-2. Julia Trunk and Emma Cioffi, meanwhile, were victorious at No. 3, 9-8, in their match with Shalini Sahoo and Olivia Smith.
The Aztecs turned the tables on TCU in singles, but it was not easy as four of San Diego State's five wins went the full three sets.
At the top of the ladder, Trunk defeated Tuohimaa, 6-1, 6-7, 7-5, and Wais followed suit at No. 2, posting the 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory over Mastromarino.
In the middle of the order, however, is where the two straight-sets decisions occurred. TCU's Smith downed Aguilar, 6-1, 6-2, at No. 3, and Cioffi dismissed Sahoo, 6-2, 7-5, at the fourth position.
The bottom of the lineup produced the other two hard-fought battles with the Ellison sisters emerging with the victories. Sierra Ellison defeated Hertzberg at No. 5, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, to post her sixth consecutive win, while Roxanne Ellison won her second in a row after beating Babanova at No. 6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
The Aztecs, who own a half-match lead over UNLV in the Mountain West standings, return to Aztec Tennis Center on Friday to play host to BYU at 2 p.m. PT. SDSU will then face Utah on Saturday at noon PT, before playing host to UNLV on Senior Day on Sunday at 10 a.m. PT. UNLV entered today tied with SDSU atop the league standings at 4-0 and is at New Mexico this afternoon.
No. 45 San Diego State 5, No. 61 TCU 2
Albuquerque, N.M.
Doubles
1. Babanova/Tuohimaa (TCU) def. No. 51 Ellison/Ellison (SDSU), 9-8
2. Hertzberg/Mastromarino (TCU) def. No. 74 Aguilar/Wais (SDSU), 8-2
3. Trunk/Cioffi (SDSU) def. Sahoo/Smith (TCU), 9-8
TCU wins doubles point.
Singles
1. Julia Trunk (SDSU) def. Katariina Tuohimaa (TCU), 6-1, 6-7, 7-5
2. Julia Wais (SDSU) def. Gaby Mastromarino (TCU), 3-6, 6-4, 6-0
3. Olivia Smith (TCU) def. Alicia Aguilar (SDSU), 6-1, 6-2
4. Emma Cioffi (SDSU) def. Shalini Sahoo (TCU), 6-2, 7-5
5. Sierra Ellison (SDSU) def. Idunn Hertzberg (TCU), 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
6. Roxanne Ellison (SDSU) def. Maria Babanova (TCU), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2