20240912_sdsu_wtennis_media_day_dtuskan_01460

Vesa Gjinaj Season 2024-25

ClassSophomore
HometownVushtrri, Kosovo
Previous SchoolBelmont

HONORS
ITA Scholar-Athlete (2025)
Academic All-Mountain West (2025)

2024-25 SEASON (As a Sophomore)
Doubles -
Played in 16 matches including 10 of 24 dual matches…Finished the season with a 6-8 overall record and 5-3 in dual matches…Paired up with Ninon Martinache on court two to take down Point Loma’s Pallencaoe/Valencia (6-2) and Colorado State’s Voeks/Zhadzinskaya (7-5)…Earned one win alongside Jo-Yee Chan on court three over Wyoming’s Abriola/Young (6-2) in addition to a victory over the same doubles team from Wyoming (6-4) when paired up with Gloria Alogo…Defeated UNLV’s Oyama/Sokolvak (6-2) on the third court alongside Zoe Olmos.

Singles - Played in 21 matches including 12 of 24 dual matches…Finished the season with a 10-6 overall record and 5-2 in dual matches, playing on the fifth and sixth courts… Earned dual victories over Point Loma’s Melissa Zirkle (6-1, 3-6 [10-2]), Grand Canyon’s Peyton Duckett (7-5, 6-1), Denver’s Hana Becirovic Novak 6-3, 6-0), Hawai’i’s Makeilah Nepomuceno (6-3, 6-0) and UNLV’s Hanna Vinahradava (6-1, 6-2).

PRIOR TO SDSU
Spent her freshman season competing for Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. where she was named the Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year…Recorded a 15-6 singles dual match record in the spring, 21-8 overall.

Represented Kosovo in three Billie Jean King Cup competitions…Recorded ITF Juniors tournament titles in Skopje, Macedonia and Peja, Kosovo, and was a finalist in Tirana, Albania…Trained at the John McEnroe Tennis Academy in New York City.

PERSONAL
Born in Vushtrri, Kosovo