CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis program is prepped and ready to take on the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC) Islanders Wednesday in the first round of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union.
 
Last Time Out
 
The Vaqueros are coming off a two-match swing in Lubbock, Texas where they battled against Texas Tech and New Mexico State.
 
The Vaqueros lost 4-0 at Texas Tech Saturday but showed fight at courts one, three, and six. Graduate student Sam Whitehead and sophomore Tsz Him "Michael" Chan led in their respective second sets and seemed poised for three-set battles. Meanwhile, junior Santiago Serrano was locked in a 4-3 battle on court three before their match was abandoned.
 
UTRGV bounced back, playing better across almost all courts, in a gritty 4-3 loss to New Mexico State (NMSU) Sunday. NMSU led 3-0 before the Vaqueros wrapped up three-set wins on courts three, five, and six to knot the match at three.
 
The run started on court three where Serrano pulled off a 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 win over Tobias Wallin. Shortly after, Chan wrapped up his comeback victory on court six with a 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 win over Thomas Duforets. Chan is now 4-2 on the season with all his wins coming at the No. 6 line.
 
Then, on court five, sophomore Loic Young Kriegel rallied back, staving off deficits in sets two and three, to defeat 1-6, 7-6 (7:1), 6-4. In addition, Young and Serrano earned a 6-3 win on court three, downing the pair of Wallin and Roko Stipetic.
 
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – Feb. 11, 10 a.m. – Thomas J. Henry Tennis Center – Corpus Christi, Texas
 
The Vaqueros will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the first edition of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, Wednesday at 10 a.m. UTRGV is 14-56 all-time against TAMUCC with its last win coming in 2024.
 
In that match, UTRGV took the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. UTRGV carried the momentum in singles, earning wins on courts two, three, and four. This was the first win over TAMUCC in 14 years.
 
Last season, these two teams squared off twice, with TAMUCC winning both matches 4-3. These two squads are very familiar with each other, having faced off twice per season for the last nine years.
 
TAMUCC, a fellow member of the Southland Conference, is 8-1 on the season, but is 2-1 against NCAA DI competition, earning two 7-0 sweeps over Alcorn State and losing 7-0 at No. 7 Texas.
 
This match will go down as a non-conference matchup with the second round, hosted by UTRGV, scheduled to take place during conference season on March 21.
 
The South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union
 
The South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, is an annual rivalry between UTRGV and TAMUCC that spans across 14 sports for the right to hoist the championship trophy.
 
UTRGV is looking for its first victory in the showdown since the 2022-23 athletic year. The Vaqueros currently lead 16-12 with six points up for grabs on Wednesday, three for the men's tennis match and three for the women's tennis match that will follow shortly after.
 
With 60 allotted points for the showdown, the men's and women's tennis programs account for 12 total points, six for each program across their two respective matches.
 
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