This post was updated May 29 at 10:30 p.m.

The Queen’s Coronation consists of six parts.

Fangran Tian – though no British royalty – would need as many wins in as many days to earn a crown of her own.

That test only appeared tougher after losing her first two singles matches all season coming in. But as the freshman laced a crosscourt forehand winner to clinch victory, she let out her signature screech, and that could only mean one thing.

She had aced the test.

In Saturday’s championship match of the NCAA women’s singles tournament, No. 9-16 seed Tian of UCLA women’s tennis triumphed over Oklahoma’s Layne Sleeth 6-4, 6-2 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida. She didn’t drop a set all tournament as she became only the second Bruin to secure the national title and the first since Keri Phebus in 1995.

“When I hit that forehand, my eyes were kind of blurry. I don’t even know what happened,” Tian said. “And after that shot, I felt like my world just went totally silent.”

Tian showed some shakiness early, opting for swing volleys instead of overheads on her approaches to the net. But she took all break opportunities that came her way, staying on the offensive all match long.

After breaking Sleeth’s first service game to go up 2-0, Tian was immediately broken back, with the Sooner leveling the score at two games apiece. Both players settled in from there, reaching 4-4 via hold after hold.

Sleeth’s grinding defense gave way to multiple unforced errors on her following service game. Tian capitalized – breaking to go up 5-4 and then turning in a big-time hold at 40-40 to move within one set of a title.

“Layne is definitely a counter-puncher defensive player, and Tian was able to wear her down, have great shot tolerance, but also be aggressive and pick the opportunities when she did,” said associate coach Rance Brown.

From then on, Tian rolled.

As Sleeth continued to find ways to extend points, Tian continued to find ways to win them. Her confidence at the net visibly grew as she took more overheads, while Sleeth committed errors at a higher rate as the match progressed. Tian pressured Sleeth with a heavy dose of crosscourt forehands, minimizing chances for the senior to come to the net.

At one point down 40-15 early in the second set, Tian ripped off three straight points to grab a 3-1 advantage that she would not relinquish. And as she further exploited cracks in Sleeth’s defensive play, Tian went up a decisive 5-1, putting her in position to serve for the match.

“We’re (both) pretty tight, but if anything, I told myself that I just need to be aggressive in the match, and I need to keep going down the line, coming to the net and finishing a shot,” Tian said. “I just have to do my job, and that’s the only thing I’m thinking about.”

Early-match jitters reemerged with the championship on Tian’s racket. Sleeth cut into the deficit with her second and final break of the day, but Tian responded with a title-clinching one of her own.

With that, volunteer assistant coach Errol Smith lifted Tian off her feet with a big hug. She completed a perfect 12-0 run in sets played at the tournament, becoming the first Chinese player to win an NCAA women’s tennis title.

“She really just took one match at a time, and her mindset was really, really strong,” said coach Stella Sampras Webster. “She just really got on a roll, and she really knew what she wanted to do each match and really committed to her game.”

Now with an entrenched spot in program history, Tian brings home serious hardware to cap off an already-dominant campaign in which she was awarded Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year after going 16-2 in dual-singles play.

“It was a special ride,” Brown said. “To see Tian do what she did, and do it the way she did and not drop a set, was pretty special. That took a lot.”

There’s a new queen of college tennis, and for just the second time ever, she resides in Westwood.