SAN DIEGO – San Diego State women's tennis hosted Alabama in their 2023 home opener on Friday, coming out victorious in a marathon match, 4-3. The match was head coach Peter Mattera's 400th career win on The Mesa.
With the match tied at 3-3, Alicia Melosch's singles match went to a decisive third set. In that third set the fifth year senior went back and forth with her opponent for over two hours, going point for point, breaking serves, and forcing mistakes. Finally with the match tied at 5-5 in the third set Melosch rattled off two straight games to take her match 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 and thus clinching the 4-3 win for the Aztecs.
The afternoon kicked off with three doubles matches featuring the pairs of Dariya Detkovskaya and Andjela Skrobonja, Tamara Arnold and Rania Azziz, and Melosch and Andreea Velcea for the Aztecs. Detkovskaya and Skrobonja faced off against Alabama's top pair of Petra Sedlackova and Anna Parkhomenko, coming out victorious in a convincing 6-3 set. Arnold and Velcea dropped their set 4-6 to Ola Pitak and Loudmilla Bencheikh despite a valiant comeback attempt. Melosch and Velcea rounded out doubles play with strong efforts as well, however falling just short in a one set tiebreak, 6-7 (2).
After barely failing to secure the doubles point, the Aztecs would bounce back in a big way with strong performances from their top two singles players. Skrobonja won against Bencheikh 6-2, 6-2 while Arnold bested No. 88 Sedlackova 6-0, 6-2, both defeating their opponents handedly in just an hour's time. Detkovskaya followed those wins with another dominating display on court three, also winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, putting the Aztecs up 3-1. After that Azziz fell in her match on court six 6-2, 7-5, but the Aztecs still held on to a 3-2 advantage with two matches still to play.
The other two matches went to a decisive third set as both Velcea and Melosch both battled back and forth with their opponents for over two hours. Velcea would fall in a heartbreaker 6-3, 5-7, 3-6 before Melosch clinched the match for SDSU.
The Stat: This is the first win for SDSU over Alabama, and the Aztecs move to 1-1 all-time against Alabama.
The Stat II: Head Coach Peter Mattera earned his 400th career win on Friday evening.
Singles Competition
No. 88 Andjela Skrobonja (SDSU) def. Loudmilla Bencheikh (Alabama) 6-2, 6-2
Tamara Arnold (SDSU) def. No. 75 Petra Sedlackova (Alabama) 6-0, 6-2
Dariya Detkovskaya (SDSU) def. Ola Pitak (Alabama) 6-3, 6-3
Alicia Melosch (SDSU) def. Anna Parkhomenk0 (Alabama) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
Klara Miliceic (Alabama) def. Andreea Velcea (SDSU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-3
Anne Marie Hiser (Alabama) def. Rania Azziz (SDSU) 6-2, 7-5
Doubles Competition
No. 59 Dariya Detkovskaya/Andjela Skrobonja (SDSU) def. Petra Sedlackova/Anna Parkhomenko (Alabama) 6-3
Ola Pitak/Loudmilla (Alabama) def. Tamara Arnold/Rania Azziz (SDSU) 4-6
Anne Marie Hiser/Klara Miliceic (Alabama) def. Alicia Melosch/Andreea Velcea (SDSU) 6-7 (2)
-SDSU-