SAN DIEGO – Head Coach Peter Mattera has announced that two transfers will join the SDSU women's tennis program. Andreea Velcea of Florida International University and Dariya Detkovskaya of Oklahoma State will join the Aztecs women's tennis program this fall.
"We are really excited to have both Andreea and Dariya join us next year," head coach Peter Mattera said. "They both have high-level Division I collegiate tennis experience, and they are both proven winners at this level. I think they are going to add valuable experience to our team and help us go for our second consecutive conference championship."
Andreea Velcea (Vel-see-uh), a native of Timisoara, Romania, will join the Aztecs after spending the past few seasons at Florida International University. At Florida International University she amassed over 30 wins over the past three seasons and played primarily at the No.4 and No. 5 slot this past season for the Panthers. During the 2021-22 season Velcea posted an impressive 11-7 record in doubles play, and a 2-0 record in singles play in conference, helping the Panthers qualify for the NCAA Championships where they fell in the first round to Florida State. In the professional ranks she has won national titles in both singles and doubles play, while reaching a career-high junior ranking of 158th in the world by the International Tennis Federation.
"We are very excited to sign Andreea, she is going to bring a lot of experience both collegiately and from the professional ranks to the Aztecs." Associate Head Coach Nicolas Vinel said. "She has played a lot of high-level tennis in both singles and doubles and is going to add another level of experience to our roster."
Dariya Detkovskaya (Debt-kov-aya) out of Almaty, Kazakhstan, will take her talents to the Mesa after playing the past three seasons at Oklahoma State. Playing primarily at the No. 3 and No. 4 spot in the Cowgirls rotation in singles play and the No. 2 slot in doubles play, Detkovskaya put up solid numbers in both. She went a combined 4-0 in singles play at the No. 2 slot and No. 3 slot during the 2020-21 season, as well as earned Academic All-Big 12 first team honors that season. Detkovskaya then helped the Cowgirls to a sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament during the 2021-22 season, in which she helped clinch the doubles point over UCLA by winning the point for Oklahoma State on court three. Professionally, Detkovskaya has been ranked as high as 353rd in the world by the International tennis Federation.
"Dariya is going to bring a lot of experience as a transfer student from a high division 1 level school," Vinel said. "She has had success both at the collegiate level and the pro level and has achieved some high professional rankings before going to college. She is going to bring a new level of excitement to the team and will help elevate the team to new heights."
The two transfers will be added to an already strong roster for the 2022-23 season. The Aztecs are returning five athletes who played key roles on the 2021-22 team that went 19-7, won the conference tournament, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament. The Aztecs 19 wins during the 2021-22 season were their most since the 2012-13 season, and their 6-2 record in conference play was the squads best win-percentage since the 2012-13 season as well.
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