HUNTSVILLE – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's tennis team continues its start to the season on the road as it faces Sam Houston State University on Friday and Stephen F. Austin University on Saturday.
 
Friday's match against Sam Houston State will start at 1 p.m. at the McAdams Tennis Center. Saturday's match against Stephen F. Austin will begin at 1 p.m. at Schlief Tennis Complex.
 
Last Time Out

• UTRGV opened the spring season with a 0-7 loss at Abilene Christian.
• The singles lineup against Abilene Christian featured Katarina Sasaroga at No. 1, Sandra Putz at No. 2, Ana Platisa at No. 3, Kristyna Mamicova at No. 4, Valeria Montero at No. 5, and Alicia Thal at No. 6.
• Thal took her match against Claire Fisher to three sets after winning in the second set before falling in the tiebreaker.
• The doubles lineup saw Sasaroga and Putz team up at No. 1, Montero and Platisa partnered at No. 2, and Thal and Mamicova teamed up at No. 3.

 
All-Time Series Against Sam Houston State

• UTRGV is 8-16 all-time against Sam Houston State in a series that dates back to 1986.
• Both teams met last season on Jan. 14 when Sam Houston State picked up the 6-1 victory.
• The last time UTRGV defeated Sam Houston State came on Jan. 25, 2015 when it won 4-3 in Huntsville.
• The previous four results vs. Sam Houston State: L 1-6 (Jan. 14, 2019), L 3-4 (Feb. 18, 2018), L 2-5 (Feb. 26, 2017), W 4-3 (Jan. 25, 2015).

 
Scouting Sam Houston State

• Sam Houston State is 1-1 on the season.
• Sam Houston State opened the season with a 6-1 win over Prairie View A&M.
• Followed with a 2-5 loss at No. 17 Texas A&M.
• Sam Houston State returns six from last year's squad, including Sahaja Yamalapalli who was the 2019 Southland Player of the Year.
• Yamalapalli picked up a victory at the No. 1 spot over Katya Townsend to improve to 2-0 on the year. 
• Emma Goedkoop also picked up a victory in the match against Texas A&M after defeating Renee McBryde at No. 6 singles.

 
All-Time Series Against Stephen F. Austin

• UTRGV is 3-12 all-time against Stephen F. Austin in a series that dates back to 1994. 
• The last time these two teams met came on Jan. 31, 2010 when Stephen F. Austin won 5-2 in Nacogdoches. 
• The last time UTRGV defeated Stephen F. Austin came on April 3, 2009 when it won 4-0 at home.
• Last previous four results vs. Stephen F. Austin: L 2-5 (Jan. 31, 2010), L 0-4 (Jan. 22, 2010), W 4-0 (April 3, 2009), W 6-1 (Feb. 1, 2008). 

 
Scouting Stephen F. Austin

• Stephen F. Austin is 1-1 on the season.
• Stephen F. Austin opened the season with a 0-7 loss at North Texas.
• Their win came against New Mexico State when it won 7-0 in a neutral site match in Denton. 
• Stephen F. Austin returns four from last year's squad, including Darinka Tiboldi who led the team last year with nine singles victories in the dual match season. 
• Stephen F. Austin will face Alcorn State and Texas State this coming weekend. 

 
Upcoming Schedule

• Jan. 29 @ Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – 3 p.m.
• Feb. 1 @ Lamar – 1 p.m.
• Feb. 9 vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – 3 p.m.
• Feb. 15 @ UTSA – 2 p.m.
• Feb. 16 @ Incarnate Word – 12 p.m.

 
Support UTRGV Women's Tennis | Become a Fan on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | Follow us on Instagram | Follow us on YouTube