A crowd of blue and a crowd of red swarmed opposite sides of the tennis court, a circle of hugging players forming as the just-finished competitors run to embrace their teammates.
But the atmosphere on the UCLA and the Texas A&M sides of Tuesday’s women’s tennis NCAA semifinal were fundamentally different. As Texas A&M players stood with their hands raised, UCLA’s squad stood solemn, with heads bowed.
After a fierce, three-hour battle between UCLA sophomore Chanelle Van Nguyen and Texas A&M freshman Maria Ines Deheza, the Bruins had fallen in a 4-3 decision.
“It’s why you play college tennis. It’s why you train so hard all year – for moments like this,” said coach Stella Sampras Webster. “We’ve had moments like this and we’ve also lost moments like this. Today was one of those moments we didn’t come through. And that’s the way athletics is.”
The dramatic match, which Sampras Webster called “right up there” with the most exciting matches she’s seen, included multiple exchanges of the lead and Van Nguyen combating severe cramps throughout; at one point, Van Nguyen’s legs gave out as she ran to defend a shot.
“I thought the match was over when she started limping on the court. She clearly couldn’t play anymore. Then at the end, everyone started crying,” said sophomore Robin Anderson.
Sampras Webster later commented on the match’s intensity, admitting that conditioning was an issue.
“That was a tough loss,” she said. “It’s not how you want to lose a match to play for the national championship.”
The day started off strong for the Bruins, who first picked up the lead by attaining the doubles point and winning two of the singles matches. However, Texas A&M was quick to catch up and soon the score was 3-3.
The players and coaches on each side found themselves waiting on the side for the nail-biting conclusion of the final set.
After the match, senior Pamela Montez didn’t have many words on the team’s performance, instead turning her thoughts to the end of her own UCLA career.
“I can only speak for myself, but that was it – that was my last match,” she said.
But even as the team dealt with the loss, Sampras Webster was already finding the silver lining for the team moving forward.
“To make the final four is commendable. To be amongst the last four teams is pretty impressive. … I’m really excited for next year,” Sampras Webster said. “I want players to learn from this.”