FORT COLLINS –Mai-Ly Tran is thoroughly convinced she has an extremely talented team.
 
Her roster made a convincing argument for their coach Saturday as the Colorado State women’s tennis team opened the season with a 5-2 victory over North Dakota at the Fort Collins Country Club, an opponent who had beaten Air Force the previous day, 4-3. The victory extended the program record for home wins to 13 as the Rams earned each of their points in singles play, winning four of the matches in straight sets.
 
Tran, a bit superstitious, didn’t want the win streak to be recognized entering the season, but there’s no hiding from the success.
 
“I think our composure impressed me most. Always with the first match there’s nerves, there’s jitters,” Tran said. “We had a great week of practice, so they played like they did in practice, which can be hard at times. For our first match, I think they knew it was going to be messy and they handled it well, and they just kept getting better as the match went on. It’s always a success when you can get the W and you’re not playing your best.”
 
Graduate student Zara Lennon was first off the court, taking an impressive 6-1, 6-2 decision at the No. 2 spot over Andrea Jansson. Not long after, Sarah Weekley completed her match with Nore Heinitz, 6-2, 6-4 at No. 3.
 
For Lennon, the key returning from break was getting back in the groove on the court and setting a rhythm for the season.
 
“What was different was I was practicing back home, so I was outdoors. Now I had to come back to high altitude indoors, so it was a bit of an adjustment,” the Mauritius product said. “Honestly, it’s my last first game, so I was just excited about it. It’s mostly on my first serve, and first-serve return and how I’m hitting my ball. Not much more than that.”
 
It was apparent in the fall, even more so on Saturday, Lennon put a lot of work into her game between seasons. She was fluid on the court, persistent with her plan and recognized the big points for what they were.
 
Physically, those improvements look to make her tougher for opponents to handle as the season progresses.
 
“I think my serve and footwork in general are better,” she said. “I feel like I’m getting to more balls and doing exactly what I want with that ball. It’s been nice. I’ve been working on my fitness a lot. This is just joy. I’m happy to be back here, happy to be competing for CSU for one last year. It’s just joy.”
 
It took a bit longer for Radka Buzkova to win at the top spot, going three sets with Sapir Sela at No. 1, prevailing 6-2, 4-6, 6-4. In the third set, Buzkova rallied from an early 3-0 deficit. Not long after, Luana Avelar clinched the dual win with her 6-2, 6-1 win over Aziza Aubin at No. 5.
 
Freshman Logan Voeks had to wait a spell to find a court. It was more than two hours after doubles ended before the Rams’ No. 6 player was given a court. She had plenty of time to watch her teammates get into the flow, which helped put her into a channeled frame of mind once her name was called.
 
“Fuel is definitely a little bit of an issue just timing wise, but honestly, watching the girls and focusing on that kept the nerves down and the anticipation down,” Voeks said. “Radka played a really close three setter, so that was fun to watch, and I started warming up after that. Really, it was just watching her and keeping my brain calm.”
 
The long wait was followed by a lengthy opener as it took her 90 minutes to take the first set against Lucia Rizza, 7-6 (4). The second set, not so much, using the knowledge learned to produce a 6-2 clincher to her first dual win, and the team’s first win of the season.
 
Overall, totally worth the wait.
 
“I definitely figured out my first serve, and then I figured out how to play her,” Voeks said. “She was really strong in her first balls, but I tended to win points after the ball went four shots or so, so I just had to keep the ball on the court a little longer. I started moving forward on my shots instead of pulling off.”
 
Lennon and Voeks are on both ends of the spectrum. For Lennon, it’s about going out strong her final season with her team. The youngster has really been looking forward to the team aspect of college, which she said is what it should be about. Place, time and circumstance in one’s career is going to alter their approach to a match and a season. Tran feels her players use their personal to aid the overall cause.
 
“Everyone has a different goal coming into a match, and you have girls in their last year enjoying the ride and others with more excitement. Logan did an impressive job in doubles with her first start, and she got to end it as well,” Tran said. “It’s always tough in your first match, especially being a freshman and having a lot of eyes on you.”
 
Tran believes all of the assembled talent will extend to doubles play soon enough, but she understands it’s going to take some time to jell as the team’s pairings were altered when Victoria Erechtchenko was injured over the holiday break. The three tandems which took the court had never played together before in competition.
 
The CSU coach gave proper credit to the opponent, who looked strong at doubles in their third match. She has every confidence her team will look the same soon enough.
 
“They’re a good doubles team. They served well and returned well, and those are things that are key for doubles,” Tran said. “they did a little better job than we did, so they earned that doubles point. That’s also a good learning lesson for us that there’s always a lot to work on for doubles, although I think we have three solid doubles teams. I think today was good to show what we need to work on.”
 
With no real time to do so, with the next outing Sunday on the road at Denver. The Rams will face the Pioneers at Denver Tennis Park at 4 p.m.