ABILENE – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team is set to kick off the spring dual match season as it faces Abilene Christian University on Saturday and Texas Tech University on Monday.
 
Saturday's match against Abilene Christian will start at 12 p.m. at the Teague Special Events Center. Monday's match against Texas Tech will start at 9 a.m. at Lubbock Country Club.
 
Last Time Out

• UTRGV wrapped up the fall semester back on October 26 at the ITA Regional Tournament.
• Zane Kohrs and Carlo Izurieta each advanced to the consolation round of 16 before falling to Baylor's Rahul Dhokia and Abilene Christian's Jonathan Sheehy, respectively. 
• UTRGV competed in just two tournaments after competing at the Islander Open and the ITA Regionals.

 
All-Time Series Against Abilene Christian

• UTRGV is 5-6 all-time against Abilene Christian in a series that dates back to 1988.
• These two teams last met came on March 7, 2015 when the Vaqueros picked up the 4-3 victory in Abilene.

 
All-Time Series Against Texas Tech

• UTRGV is 10-15 all-time against Texas Tech in a series that dates back to 1961.
• The last time these two teams faced off came on January 21, 2018 in Lubbock where Texas Tech came away with the 5-0 victory. 
• The last time UTRGV came away with a win came in 1981. 

 
Scouting Abilene Christian

• ACU is 0-2 on the season.
• Losses have come against Tennessee and Oklahoma, falling 7-0 in both matches. 
• The only victory so far for ACU has come in doubles where the team of Jackson Fine and Jonathan Sheehy picked up a 6-3 win over Tennessee's Pat Harper and Andrew Rogers in the No. 1 spot.
• Will follow UTRGV to Lubbock to face Texas Tech on Monday.

 
Scouting Texas Tech

• Texas Tech is 1-0 on the season.
• Opened the season with a 4-3 victory over Iowa on the road.
• Texas Tech picked up victories at singles spots No. 2, 5, and 6 while taking the doubles point with victories at the No. 1 and 3 spots. 
• Ilgiz Valiev is ranked No. 69 in singles while Reed Collier, who played at the No. 3 spot, is ranked #114.
• Parker Wynn and Bjorn Thomson defeated Will Davies and Oliver Okonkwo, who are ranked No. 16 in doubles. 

 
UTRGV Has Depth Heading into Spring Dual Match Season

• UTRGV has a lot of depth heading into the spring dual match season with 10 student-athletes on the roster.
• Nine of the 10 on the roster have experience, with Jason Loyd being the only freshman on the squad. 
• Seven return from last year's squad including Georgije Babic, Samuel Felipe de Garcia, George Hutchings, Zhane Kohrs, Michael Loyd, Mateo Schmit, and Te Kani Williams.
• Two transfers join the squad in Alberto Melloand Carlo Izurieta, both of which bring collegiate experience after playing at Laredo Community College and Seward County Community College, respectively.

 
Having Fun on the Court

• UTRGV hasn't competed since the end of October, which means it has spent a lot of time practicing but that hasn't stopped them from having some fun.
• Focusing on individual game, singles and doubles games, and techniques.

 
"They want to win and they will put in the work to get there," UTRGV head coach Dann Nelsonsaid. "For the coaching staff, it's been a lot of fun. One of the most fun groups I have had in a long time. I am really looking forward to this season."
 
Upcoming Schedule

• Jan. 29 @ Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – 12 p.m.
• Feb. 5 vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – 12 p.m.
• Feb. 13 vs. Laredo Community College – 2 p.m.
• Feb. 21-22 @ H-E-B Tournament of Champions – TBA
• Feb. 26 vs. Lamar – 11 a.m.

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