A.C. Hummel finished her final weekend at the Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center with back-to-back, match-clinching victories.
The fourth-year German native won both of her matches in the third set at No. 4 singles, and her second matchup proved to be the deciding factor on her Senior Day.
Fresno State’s women’s tennis team ended the weekend with two wins in Mountain West play, the first a 4-2 victory over UNLV and the second a 4-2 Senior Day win over No. 66 San Diego State.
The ‘Dogs have now won six consecutive matches and finished their season on a 13-game winning streak dating back to February 2021. The ‘Dogs now hold a 14-3 record overall and a 4-0 record in Mountain West competition.
“The entire day was amazing with the girls’ performances and all the support we got. Clinching on Senior Day is everyone’s dream come true. I was very nervous at the end and my heart was beating, but it was the best way to finish,” Hummel said.
The first match of the weekend began successfully as the ‘Dogs picked up the doubles point by winning 2-of-3 sets against the Rebels.
The pairing of Pang Jittakoat and Matilde Magrini dominated their opponents at the No. 1 spot in a 6-1 victory. They were shortly followed by the No. 2 spot duo of Carlotta Nonnis Marzano and Carolina Piferi sealing the doubles point with a 6-2 win of their own.
Now leading after doubles play, Fresno State began singles competition by extending their lead.
Jittakoat took the first win at the No. 1 spot against UNLV’s Molly Helgesson with scores of 6-2 and 6-4. She was followed by Piferi at the No. 6 spot, taking down the Rebels’ Coco Zhao with scores of 6-4 and 6-2.
Despite trailing 3-0, UNLV picked up a couple wins in singles play to pull within one. However, Hummel clinched the victory for the ‘Dogs by winning at the No. 4 spot with scores of 6-1 and 6-4.
Fresno State’s second match of the weekend came against a considerably better opponent in the No. 66-ranked San Diego State Aztecs who entered the game riding a six-match winning streak.
The ‘Dogs began the match with a strong showing in doubles play as the pairing of Jittakoat and Magrini once again secured a 6-2 win at the No. 1 spot. They were then followed by Marzano and Piferi who won at the No. 2 spot to clinch the doubles point for the second consecutive match.
Jittakoat began scoring again for Fresno State in singles play by winning at the No. 1 spot with scores of 7-5 and 6-2. This marked her eighth straight victory in singles play, each of which she’s won without losing a single set.
San Diego State followed the No. 1 spot loss with two wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots. However, Piferi won her 10th-straight match at the No. 6 spot to give the ‘Dogs a 3-2 lead.
The match came down to Marzano and Hummel competing side-by-side in their third sets. Both led as the game came to a close, but Hummel sealed the win once again by taking the No. 4 spot with scores of 6-2 and 6-2.
The Bulldogs are now riding a six-match winning streak as they head into their final six matches of the season. Assistant coach Calvin Song was especially proud of the team as it hit the half-way point of its conference schedule, and closed out home play for the season.
“Everyone is ready to dig deep for every single match, and no one is ready to throw in the towel. Sometimes when it’s the middle of season, it’s easy to do that but these girls have so much focus and grit,” Song said.
He also emphasized the sense of pride given from the effort of his senior players in their final home matches.
“Getting to know them [senior players] these past couple of years was a really beautiful moment. I think they’ve come so far from their freshman year, to end it the way Hummel did on her terms. We’re super proud of her and all of our other seniors,” he said.
