Colorado Buffaloes Dominate at Milwaukee Tennis Classic

GLENDALE, Wis. – On the final day of the 50th anniversary Milwaukee Tennis Classic, Colorado didn’t just finish its weekend. It stamped it.

With the courts at their quietest after two heavy days of play, the Buffaloes closed the tournament by taking care of both business lines against Wisconsin: doubles and singles.

The tone came early from a familiar pairing. Returning Buffs duo Lera Alexin and Ema Bubalo walked onto the court with a clear plan and walked off with a 6-2 win, outplaying the Badgers’ team of Colorado native Karolina Jacobson and Gabriela Skrabalova.

Alexin and Bubalo broke immediately, striking first for 1-0. Wisconsin answered to level at 1-1, but that was as close as it got. The Colorado pair tightened the screws, rolling through three straight games for a 4-1 lead, seizing control of the baseline exchanges and dictating at the net. When the Badgers briefly halted the surge at 4-2, the Buffs simply shut the door, taking the final two games to close out a sharp, composed performance.

With doubles in the bag, attention turned to the only Colorado singles match of the day – and to a debut.

First-year player Louise Ternstroem, making her first appearance for CU, stepped into the singles lineup as the lone Buff in action and delivered the kind of grind-it-out win coaches remember.

Facing Jacobson, Ternstroem grabbed the opening set 6-3, settling quickly into the rally patterns and finding enough first serves when she needed them. Jacobson refused to go quietly. The Badger pushed the second set into a tiebreak and edged it 7-6, dragging the contest into a deciding match tiebreak.

That’s where Ternstroem held her nerve. In a tight final frame, she outlasted Jacobson to seal a three-set victory, officially recorded as 6-3, 6-7, 1-0. It was a debut that matched the tone of Colorado’s weekend: resilient, mature, and efficient under pressure.

By the end of Sunday, four Buffs had navigated three days of heavy workload – six doubles matches and 15 singles played across Friday and Saturday – and still finished with enough in the tank to dominate the closing session.

Head coach Anthony Pham liked what he saw.

"I thought our group made some good progress this weekend," Pham said. "We played a ton of matches, competed well, and are showing strong maturity in how we handle adversity."

That maturity will be tested again soon. Colorado heads back to Boulder this week, trading hotel hallways for practice courts, with preparations already aimed at the Bedford Cup, set for Sept. 25-27 at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

"We are excited to get back to practice, to prepare for the Bedford Cup in a couple of weeks," Pham said.

The 50th Milwaukee Tennis Classic closed with Colorado in control. The next question is whether this early-season edge travels with them into the high-altitude battles to come.