Julie Ditty, the former Vanderbilt star who led the women's tennis team to the school's first ever national championship final, and transplanted South African Liezel Huber defeated Gisela Dulko and Betina Jozami 6-2, 6-3 in the deciding match Sunday to give the United States a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Argentina in the Fed Cup quarterfinals.

The triumph in chilly suburban Phoenix sends the United States into a semifinal match-up against the Czech Republic.

Ditty, the all-time leader in USTA Pro Circuit titles, replaced Bethanie Mattek on the U.S. Fed Cup team to Argentina in the 2009 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas quarterfinal tie Feb. 7-8 at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex in Surprise, Ariz.

Mattek, the third-highest ranked American in the world, was forced to withdraw from the event since she was battling a hip injury that prevented her from playing in the Australian Open.

Ditty, age 30, was an All-American at Vanderbilt and led the team to the NCAA Finals against Stanford in 2001.

"I was thrilled to get that call. I am just really honored to be able to represent my country," Ditty said of joining the team. "I think we have a really great group of girls here. I'm just really excited to be part of the team."

She became the all-time USTA Pro Circuit career title leader after sweeping both singles and doubles at the $75,000 event in Albuquerque, N.M., last September, and then proceeded to capture her 33rd title (nine singles) after winning doubles at the $50,000 event in Lawrenceville, Ga., the following month. She enjoyed arguably her best season as a professional in 2008, earning direct entry into the main draw of the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon, and reached a career-high No. 89 singles ranking in March. This is her first Fed Cup tie.

USTA.com and Vucommodores.com contributed to this article.