(02-25-2022, 04:36 PM)Spiny_Norman Wrote:(02-25-2022, 04:20 PM)ColoradoTree Wrote: What a fight, you guys! This is why I'm still a little sore we fell short against UVA--not only should we have gone to Indoor Nationals, we should've made some noise. The difference was Yepifanova folding late there and turning it on here, and that's awesome. (And Ma turning on the jets in the third over Peyton Stearns, holy mackerel.)
We're good, folks. Real, real good.
I certainly got nervous when Yepifanova double faulted in the 3rd set at 5-2, 40 all. She came back on her next service game for the win. Matches like these should be a good confidence boost for her. To succeed at this level, you have to learn the right mindset for closing out an opponent. Part of that is having a short memory and keeping doubt out.
Ma on the other hand looked like she has nerves of steel. She played a sliced shot in the 3rd set that dropped perfectly into a corner near the service line with a ton of spin that her opponent had no chance to return. Takes a very high level of skill to pull off that shot in a pressure situation. It was very impressive.
I too was nervous when she double-faulted. I actually called it for some odd reason. I really thought she was going to crumble again like she did again UVA. This match should give her confidence moving forward.
I'm so glad they decided to play out Ma's match. She's very poise and plays a great game. She reminds me of Fery on the men's team. Both play very a smart game and both are fun to watch.