WACO – Senior Rhea Makesar earned a three-set comeback victory at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Texas Regional Friday, becoming the first student-athlete from The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's tennis program to reach the singles main draw Round of 32 since Dominique Ibarra in 2018.
 
All three sets between Makesar and Tarleton's Anna Huisgen were decided by just two games as the opponents traded blows throughout the match. Huisgen took the first set 6-4. Then, at 5-5 in the second set, Makesar broke Huisgen's serve to take a 6-5 lead. Makesar served out the set, 7-5, to force a deciding third.
 
Makesar and Huisgen once again traded service games with the third set reaching an even 4-4. Makesar once again broke Huisgen's serve to take a 5-4 lead before serving out the final game to seal the victory 6-4.
 
Now, for the first time under the leadership of head coach West Nott, UTRGV has sent a student-athlete to the Round of 32 in singles. Makesar is also one of just two student-athletes from Southland Conference programs to reach the Round of 32, joining Kseniya Ramanouskaya from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC).
 
Meanwhile, in doubles play, freshman Mirka Delaney and junior Juana Gomez Weiss advanced to the Round of 32 after defeating the Texas State (TXST) duo of Avery Arant and Kinley VanPelt, 8-4, in the opener. The duo joined junior Luna Buijtenhuijs and senior Hitakamya Narwal in the Round of 32 after the latter pairing advanced via a walkover Thursday.
 
Accompanying Makesar in the singles main draw were sophomore Mariangel Estrella, Gomez Weiss, and Narwal.
 
Estrella took an early lead against the seeded Nithesa Sevaraj from Rice, winning the first set 6-3. Sevaraj bounced back with a 6-4 win in the second before taking the match with a 6-1 win in the third.
 
Gomez Weiss faced off against Ramanouskaya and found herself down early in the match. Ramanouskaya took the first 6-1, but Gomez Weiss dug deep to force a long second set before falling 6-4.
 
Narwal faced off against the No. 6 seed, Sofiia Mykhailets from TCU, and eventually lost 6-2, 6-2.
 
Makesar will look to continue her run in the singles main draw Saturday, while the remaining Vaqueros compete in their respective consolation draws.
 
Fans can watch live on select courts through Baylor's PlaySight, follow along through live scoring, or find overall results on the tournament page on the ITA website.
 
UTRGV Friday Results
Singles
Main Draw Round of 64
Rhea Makesar (UTRGV) def. Anna Huisgen (Tarleton), 4-6, 7-5, 6-4
Nithesa Sevaraj (Rice) def. Mariangel Estrella (UTRGV), 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
#6 Sofiia Mykhailets (TCU) def. Hitakamya Narwal (UTRGV), 6-2, 6-2
Kseniya Ramanouskaya (TAMUCC) def. Juana Gomez Weiss (UTRGV), 6-1, 6-4
 
Doubles
Main Draw Round of 32
#7 Uma Bakaiyte/Maria Fernanda Martinez Hernandez (Rice) def. Mirka Delaney/Juana Gomez Weiss (UTRGV), 8-3
#9 Ella Brownback/Laura Valentine Pop (TTU) def. Luna Buijtenhuijs/Hitakamya Narwal (UTRGV), 8-0
 
Main Draw Round of 64
Mirka Delaney/Juana Gomez Weiss (UTRGV) def. Avery Arant/Kinley VanPelt (TXST), 8-4
Jennifer Jackson/Valerie Shue (TTU) def. Mariangel Estrella/Rhea Makesar (UTRGV), 8-4
 
UTRGV Saturday Schedule
Singles
Main Draw Round of 32
Rhea Makesar (UTRGV) vs. Elena Mireles (SMU), 9:30 a.m.
 
Consolation Draw Round of 32
Juana Gomez Weiss (UTRGV) vs. Kenna Erickson (Baylor), 12:30 p.m.
Mariangel Estrella (UTRGV) vs. Alexia Puiac (UH), 12:30 p.m.
Hitakamya Narwal (UTRGV) vs. Yoana Konstantinova (TAMU), 1:30 p.m.
 
Doubles
Consolation Round of 32
Mariangel Estrella/Rhea Makesar (UTRGV) vs. #6 Gabrielle Villegas/Alian Zack (Baylor), 8 a.m.

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