RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's tennis team is hoping to use the fall as a springboard into a successful year.
 
The 2025-26 competition year begins with fall tournaments, which focuses more on individual competition rather than team scoring. The Vaqueros are slated to compete in six fall tournaments, including the Southland Conference Fall Championship and trips to Baylor and Texas State.
 
"We are choosing to play a highly competitive fall schedule to prepare us for the spring," head women's tennis coach West Nott said. "In order to prepare, we are trying to find as many opportunities as possible to play elite players and keep pushing ourselves to see what we are capable of."
 
There is one word that encapsulates the difference between this fall and last fall for the women's tennis program: experience.
 
This time last year, the Vaqueros were working to integrate five newcomers into the roster and were entering their first year in the Southland Conference. This year, the Vaqueros are returning eight of nine student-athletes from last year's squad.
 
"We have our entire team returning and we are excited to hit the ground running," head women's tennis coach West Nott said. "We all know each other, the trust is there, and we have a certain culture in place to keep building upon."
 
Last year, the Vaqueros relied on their depth last season as they achieved winning records on courts 3, 4, and 5 in Southland play. Senior Yaiza Vazquez finished out the year at No. 3 and ended with a 4-1 record in conference play. At No. 4 singles, junior Madeleine Joffe finished the year 5-4 while junior Hitakamya Narwal went 5-2 at No. 5.
 
All three return for the Vaqueros as well as junior Rhea Makesar who finished the year playing on court one.
 
"I really like this group, they work very hard with the right attitude, and now we just need to go out and fight like a pack of dogs," Nott said.
 
Another area where the Vaqueros hope to see continued success is in doubles play. All three doubles pairings in conference play earned winning records. The doubles teams combined for an overall 14-7 record in conference play.
 
The Vaqueros came back energized, fit, and ready to compete this season. The young team all earned valuable experience last season, and Nott is already seeing levels of improvement in both the physical and mental aspects of their games.
 
This fall will provide an opportunity for Nott to solidify the order for both the singles and doubles lineups and pairings and build on last year's success.
 
The first step to completing a successful fall season starts this weekend as the team splits up to travel to Rice and Texas A&M-Kingsville for their first two fall tournaments of the season.