BEAUMONT, Texas – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's tennis program is set to visit the Lamar (LU) Cardinals and Incarnate Word (UIW) Cardinals this weekend.
 
Last Time Out
 
UTRGV picked up its first Southland Conference (SLC) win of the season in a 4-3 thriller against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC). This was the program's first win over the Islanders in eight years.
 
The Vaqueros jumped out to a 1-0 lead by earning dominant wins on courts two and three in doubles play. Graduate student Barbara Martinez and senior Yaiza Vazquez teamed up for a 6-1 win on court two while sophomore Mariia Bakhtina and junior Hitakamya Narwal cruised to a 6-0 win on court three.
 
Martinez carried her momentum from the doubles session over to singles play, dominating in a 6-2, 6-1 win over Leticia Tarocco on court one to give UTRGV a 2-0 lead. Martinez is riding a four-match win streak at No. 1 singles which includes wins against Stephen F. Austin, UT Permian Basin, and Tarleton.
 
Court six was the next to finish as Bakhtina wrapped up a gritty, 6-3, 7-5 win to take a 3-0 lead in the match. Sophomore Luna Buijtenhuijs clinched the match for the Vaqueros on court four, taking her match against Adriana Jimenez, 6-4, 6-4 to go up 4-0.
 
After earning its first conference win of the season, UTRGV will try to keep that momentum rolling against two in-state conference opponents.
 
Lamar – March 28, 1 p.m. – Thompson Family Tennis Center – Beaumont, Texas
 
The Vaqueros will look to build on their momentum from last weekend with their first match of the road trip against the Lamar Cardinals Saturday at 1 p.m. UTRGV has won two consecutive matches against LU and is 12-22 in the all-time series.
 
In their last matchup, a 6-1 win for UTRGV in Edinburg in 2025, UTRGV earned the doubles point and won on courts one through five in singles play.
 
LU is 8-7 overall and has a 1-4 record in SLC play this season. The Cardinals are coming off a 1-1 road trip, picking up 4-3 win against Nicholls and falling 5-2 to New Orleans.
 
In the win against Nicholls, LU dropped the doubles point but won four of six singles points to defeat the Colonels 4-3. The Cardinals picked up wins on courts one, two, four, and six in the match.
 
Incarnate Word – March 30, 2 p.m. – Mabry Tennis Center – San Antonio, Texas
 
UTRGV will complete its conference weekend with a Monday matinee against UIW at 2 p.m. at the Mabry Tennis Center in San Antonio. UTRGV is 7-3 all-time against the Cardinals, including a 4-3 win in Edinburg in their last matchup in 2025.
 
The Vaqueros and Cardinals have played three tightly contested matches over the last three seasons, with all three ending 4-3 and UTRGV winning two of them.
 
UIW enters the weekend with a 4-8 overall record and a 3-2 record in conference play. This past weekend, UIW earned 4-3 wins over Nicholls and New Orleans to go over .500 in conference play.
 
The Cardinals will take on Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Saturday prior to their match against UTRGV.

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