DAVIS, Calif. – The student-athletes of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team got an early start to their spring break traveling as they departed for California early Thursday. 
 
They won't be getting much of a break, though. The men's tennis student-athletes will be playing four matches across California, getting the opportunity to see four new teams and build team chemistry as they enjoy a week-long road trip. 
 
"It's our first time coming to California as a team. We have beautiful weather, perfect conditions for tennis. We're in good form and we're looking forward to getting four good wins this week," senior captain Te Kani Williams said. 
 
UTRGV (5-9) will begin the string of matches on Saturday when it faces Hawai'I (5-3-1) at 5 p.m. (CT). The Vaqueros will take on Nevada (3-5) at 1 p.m. (CT) on Sunday. Both matches will be played at UC San Diego's Northview Tennis Courts. 
 
"Playing Hawaii and Nevada is really exciting because they're schools we've never played before. Hopefully we get a similar result like when we played BYU last week, another school we hadn't played before. The guys are ready for it," Williams said. 
 
On Tuesday, UTRGV will play Hope International (4-4) at 2 p.m. (CT) at the Fullerton Tennis Center. The Vaqueros will wrap up the road trip with a 1 p.m. (CT) match at UC Irvine on Wednesday at Anteater Tennis Stadium. 
 
Along the way, the Vaqueros will celebrate some birthdays, go on some hikes and visit with UTRGV Athletics Hall of Fame men's tennis player Don Russell. It'll be a trip to remember for the student-athletes. 
 
"We're all really lucky to be here. It's going to be a nice spring break and everyone is really excited for the week. We're all looking forward to our matches and everyone is really excited," junior Emilien Burnel said. 

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