FRESNO — Top-seeded Anna Erikson did not disappoint last weekend, holding court for three days en route to a victory in the tenth annual Bulldog Tennis Classic at Fresno State.

“She has really good game. She is one of the best women in the nation,” Fresno State’s Lucia Sainz said.

Erikson defeated third-seeded Katharina Winterhalter of Fresno State 6-0, 6-4 to secure the championship.

“I started off well, everything was working. I won the tough points,” Erikson said. “In the second set, (Winterhalter) played well, so I tried to move her on the court.”

Battling tendonitis in her right elbow, the sophomore Erikson used steady play and forehands with enough torque to lift her slight frame from the surface to defeat her opponents.

After her final match she said, “It hurts very much right now, but I didn’t play worse because of it.”

Head coach Bill Campbell said that they considered pulling Erikson from the tournament all together, but that she wanted to play despite the injury.

“She’s a warrior out there,” Campbell said.

Winterhalter defeated Erikson’s teammate Cecilia Helland 6-4, 6-2 on her way to the finals.

“(Winterhalter’s) slice is really good. She plays really well on the back, she’s real fast,” Sainz said about her doubles partner.

Another Hornet making an impressive showing was freshman Klara Petersson, who made her collegiate debut by advancing to the semifinals before running into Erikson and losing 6-4, 6-0.

On Saturday, the second day of the competition, Petersson defeated Sainz in a marathon match that lasted over three hours, to make it to the final four. Sainz later got her revenge when she and Winterhalter defeated Petersson and senior Roberta Fessenko in doubles competition 8-1.

“I think I did well to be in the semifinals in my first tournament,” Petersson said.

Her coach shared her sentiments.

“For her first college tournament, I think she did really well,” Campbell said.

“She has all the shots, her forehand and backhand are both good,” said Sainz, who added that the heat may have played into the ease of their doubles victory.

Indeed, the second day of the competition wore on the players’ faces like red badges of courage as many of them started the day at 8 a.m. and played four matches in the searing heat that reached over 100 degrees on the playing surface before the day was out.

The top-seeded doubles team of Erikson and Margarita Karnaukhova, who is ranked No. 24 in the nation, did not play after they pulled out of the competition due to Erikson’s injury.

Senior Roberta Fessenko, the second seed, lost to the University of Pacific’s Natalia Kostenko, the eighth seed 7-6, 7-5 in the quarterfinals.

Last year, Erikson finished second in the Bulldog Classic, losing to California’s Jody Scheldt 6-3, 6-3.

Erikson, Petersson, Fessenko and junior Karnaukhova were all invited to the 2004 Riviera/ITA all-American Championships this year. The Riviera features the top players in all of NCAA Division I tennis. Sac State had one player invited two years ago, two last year and four this year, a school record.

Play for the tournament begins Oct. 2 with the main draw taking place Oct. 7-10 at the Riviera Tennis Club in Palisades, Calif.