Freshman Marta Stojanovic Clinched the 4-3 Victory over USF

Women's Tennis April 25, 2013

Toreros Win 4-3 Thriller Over USF

April 25, 2013

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The University of San Diego women's tennis team outlasted San Francisco 4-3 in a thrilling match in the WCC Tournament quarterfinals Thursday afternoon. With the match tied at 3-3, freshman Marta Stojanovic sealed the win for the Toreros with a come-from-behind 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory at the No. 4. The Toreros advance to face the No. 1 seed Saint Mary's tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.

"It's just one of the best feelings in the world. I was just so happy," Stojanovic said after the match.
"I know that we all have been working really hard all season and I know that we deserve this so I'm happy that I was able to give this win to the whole team."

The Toreros won a tightly contested doubles point to kick off the morning. Every match came down to the wire, with the Toreros coming out on top at the No. 2 and 3 spots. First it was Anna Depenau and Nicole Ramser besting Marina Nikolic and Brooke Irish 8-5 at the No. 3. Cara Brown and Marta Stojanovic followed that by edging out Yurie Hashiguchi and Milica Hadzi-Tanovic 9-7 at the No. 2.

The Toreros were able to jump out to a 3-0 lead after winning singles at the No. 6 and 5. Senior Cara Brown cruised to a 6-0, 6-2 win at the No. 6 while Anna Depenau had no problem at the No. 5, winning 6-0, 6-1

With their season on the line the Dons would not go away easily, rallying to win the next three singles matches. In a battle of ranked players, the Dons' No. 88 Andrea Ka outlasted No. 79 Laura Claus 6-1, 6-4 at the No. 1. The Dons picked up another win at the No. 3 where Milica Hadzi-Tanovic edged Shani Blecher 6-2, 7-5.

The Dons would tie it at three a piece when Sofia Holmberg defeated Stephanie Hoffpauir in three sets.6-1, 2-6, 6-4 at the No. 2.

Freshman Marta Stojanovic played with the poise of a senior and rallied after losing the first set to win 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 to send the Toreros to the semifinals.

"You feel a lot of pressure, but I like that," Stojanovic said. "I like those kind of moments, and ya know I love my team and we are all fighting out there. We all put a lot of strength into the match and I just wanted to win for them."

The Toreros will face Saint Mary's, who finished in a three-way tie for the WCC regular season championship. The Gaels earned the No. 1 seed after having the highest ITA team rankings at No. 40. The Toreros lost to the Gaels 5-0 on the road on March 26.

WCC Tournament Scores

#3 Santa Clara def. #7 LMU 4-2, Plays #2 Pepperdine

#4 San Diego def. #5 USF 4-3, Plays #1 St. Mary's

DOUBLES COMPETITION

1. No. 68 Claus/Blecher (USD) vs. Ka/Holmberg (USF) 6-7 DNF

2. Brown/Stojanovic (USD) def. Hashiguchi/Hadzi-Tanovic (USF) 9-7

3. Depenau/Ramser (USD) def. Nikolic/Irish (USF) 8-5

SINGLES COMPETITION

1. No. 88 Andrea Ka (USF) def. No. 79 Laura Claus (USD) 6-1, 6-4

2. Sofia Holmberg (USF) def. Stephanie Hoffpauir (USD) 6-1, 2-6, 6-4

3. Milica Hadzi-Tanovic (USD) def. Shani Blecher (USD) 6-2, 7-5

4. Marta Stojanovic (USD) def. Marina Nikolic (USF) 4-6, 7-5, 6-2