TYLER, TEXAS – The UT Tyler women's tennis program will have their first chance to rebound after a close loss to Midwestern State on Sunday as they will take on Angelo State on Thursday and Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday in their final two road LSC contests for the season.
STILL UP IN THE AIR
With just three matches left on the LSC schedule, the Patriots still hold a chance at capturing the LSC regular season title. Midwestern State holds the top spot at 5-1, but they are tied with three other programs that also only hold one loss. Just behind them are the Patriots at 4-2, and two of their remaining contests are against teams above them in the standings.
SERIES HISTORY
The Patriots and the Rams have faced off just once in their program's histories, and that matchup came just last season. The Rams came away with a 5-2 victory in a match that would end up securing the LSC title for Angelo State.
The match itself proved to be closer than the score indicated, as the Patriots nearly took the doubles point but lost out on a tiebreaker. Additionally, the Patriots dropped a pair of close singles matches that nearly went their way.
As for the Javelinas and the Patriots, the two programs have met twice all time and each team has one victory to their name. The first of those meetings came on February 17, 2019, and the most recent was on April 24, 2021.
In last year's match, the Patriots came away with a 5-2 victory. The team swept the doubles portion of the contest, and
Tanvikhaa Saravanan,
Leony Deutschmann, and
Chloe Chawner each came away with singles victories.
THE SCOUTING REPORT
Angelo State sits at 13-5 overall currently and 5-1 in LSC play. The Rams are winners of their last four LSC matches including wins over DBU, Midwestern State, UAFS and Cameron.
Daniela Rodriguez leads the way for the Rams in singles with a perfect 6-0 record in LSC play and a 14-2 record overall. Rodriguez is a winner of her last six matches, including four over nationally ranked players.
In doubles, the pair of Ayda Guler and Ramitha Irrinki combine to be 14-7 overall and 4-2 in LSC competition. The pair have won three consecutive matches leading into Thursday's matchup with UT Tyler.
Coaching the Rams is Chris Bizot. Bizot is in his fifth season as head coach at Angelo State. Last season, Bizot led the Rams to a women's regular season LSC championship with a perfect 9-0 record.
For the Javelinas, they are currently 8-9 overall and an even 3-3 in LSC play. Their resume includes wins over UT Permian Basin, DBU, and UAFS.
A pair of Javelinas sit at 4-1 in LSC competition and 11-5 overall in singles play. Alessa Maier is a winner of nine of her last ten matches with her only loss coming against Cameron. Milou ter Morsche is a winner of eight of her last ten contests with the only two losses coming against Cameron and Biola.
In doubles, it is the pair of Maier and Manuela Turolo who sit at 9-5 overall and 3-1 in LSC play to lead Texas A&M-Kingsville. The pair have won two of their last three matches and hold LSC victories over St. Mary's, Cameron, and UAFS.
Coaching Texas A&M-Kingsville is Autumn Wollenzien. Wollenzien took over the program in 2014 after four seasons at Clark Atlanta. Under her tenure, the Javelinas most recently made their first regional appearance in the 2020-2021 season.
LONE STAR CONFERENCE UPDATE
With just a few matches remaining for everyone in the LSC, Midwestern State, St. Mary's, and Angelo State all hold records of 5-1. Just behind that trio of programs is Cameron, who sits at 4-1. Rounding out the top five are the Patriots at 4-2.
ON THE HORIZON
Next up for UT Tyler after this week's contests will be their final LSC matchup of the season against St. Mary's on April 23. That will be the final contest of the season before preparations begin for the LSC postseason tournament April 28-30.
Eight teams will make the LSC tournament and participate in a single elimination tournament. The tournament itself will take place at the Arlington Tennis Center in Arlington, Texas.
