HARLINGEN, Texas – The WAC Women's Tennis Tournament starts Thursday, and 2-seed Tarleton State will open with 7-seed Stephen F. Austin at 3 p.m. at the HEB Tennis Center in Harlingen.
The Texans (15-3, 6-1 WAC) knocked off the Ladyjacks 6-1 at the Tarleton Tennis Facility in Stephenville, Texas, less than two weeks ago.
In that match, the Texans swept the doubles point with a 6-3 win on Court 1 by
Martha Makantasi and
Maretha Burger, a 6-3 win on Court 2 by
Elsa Boisson and
Ximena Morales, and a 6-1 win on Court 3 by
Emma Persson and
Noelia Lorca.
Tarleton State followed that with five straight set victories in singles. Boisson defeated Ksenia Mamontova 7-5 6-3 at No. 1, Makantasi defeated Felicia Back 6-3 6-3 at No. 2, Lorca defeated Jemma Cave 6-1 6-4 at No. 3, Morales defeated Carolina Chiatti 6-3 7-6(9-7), and
Clara Sobius defeated Avery Kinsey 6-3 6-2 at No. 6.
The Ladyjacks (9-10, 1-6 WAC) have lost five straight matches entering the WAC Tournament. They are seeking their first victory in the WAC Tournament, making their second in appearance in three years. Before missing the tournament last season, No. 3 SFA was upset by No. 6 Sam Houston in 2022 4-2.
The Texans, meanwhile, own a 2-1 record in the WAC Tournament, all matches played last season in their first season of eligibility. Also the No. 2 seed last year, Tarleton State knocked off No. 7 Seattle U 4-1 to open the tournament.
Five members of that tournament team are still on the roster this year in Persson, Boisson, Makantasi, Morales and Sobius. Entering Thursday, two of those members just earned All-Conference honors, along with first-year Texan
Noelia Lorca. Makantasi was awarded Singles First Team recognition, with Boisson and Lorca taking Singles Second Team accolades.
The winner between Tarleton and SFA's match will advance to the WAC Tournament semifinals to face off against the winner of No. 3 UT Arlington and No. 6 UTRGV.
Admission is free at the 2024 WAC Tennis Tournament, hosted by UTRGV. Live scoring can be found
here.
