University of Houston Athletics
Cougars Look to Build on Momentum vs. Kansas
2/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Tennis
HOUSTON - Fresh off of two exhilarating victories last week, the University of Houston tennis team will face the University of Kansas on Saturday morning. First serve at the Jayhawk Tennis Center in Lawrence, Kan., is scheduled for 11 am CT, and live scoring is available at KUAthletics.com.
Houston (4-3) earned a pair of wins over nationally-ranked Pac-12 Conference opponents last week. On Feb. 6, the Cougars dropped No. 57 Washington State, 5-2. One day later, Patrick Sullivan's club came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat No. 42 Washington, 4-3.
The Cougars moved up two spots, to No. 49, in this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. Houston is the only American Athletic Conference program with two nationally-ranked singles players, as Despoina Vogasari occupies the No. 24 spot in the latest rankings and Elena Kordolaimi is listed at No. 90.
Vogasari was named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday after winning both of her singles matches last week. The sophomore defeated Washington State's Elizaveta Luzina, 7-5, 6-3, and she turned around the next day to vanquish No. 90 Elianne Douglas-Miron of Washington by the same score. The Player of the Week honor is the second this season for Vogasari and the fifth of her career, to go along with two American Player of the Month honors.
Kordolaimi is riding a nine-matching winning streak dating back to the fall semester, which matches her career high. The senior also scored a pair of wins last week; she came from a set down to beat Washington State's Maria Biryukova, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2, and she easily dispatched of Washington's Grace Ysidora, 6-4, 6-2.
Both Vogasari and Kordolaimi are 6-0 in spring season matches. Vogasari is 17-3 overall, and Kordolaimi enters the weekend at 14-4.
Rocio Martin scored the decisive point in Houston's victory over Washington on Feb. 7. The junior was down a set to Miki Kobayashi, and her third flight battle turned into the decisive point after the other courts had finished with the score even at 3-all. Martin rallied and overcame Kobayashi to earn a 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory and clinch the match for Houston.
Junior Maria Cardenas was another top performer for the Cougars last week. The junior swept Washington State's Nastia Vasyukhina, 6-0, 6-0, and she scored an important point over Riko Shimizu of Washington, 6-3, 6-1.
 | SCOUTING KANSAS |
Kansas (2-3) has won two consecutive matches, a 4-0 victory over New Mexico State on Feb. 7 and a 6-1 result over Pacific on Feb. 8. The Jayhawks play Wichita State on Thursday, two days before they host Houston in their 2015 home opener.
Senior Maria Belen Ludueña is KU's top player, currently holding the No. 8 ranking in the Central Region. She has won three straight matches individually and is 8-7 overall.
Ludueña and junior Maria Jose Cardona are ranked fourth in the Central Region doubles rankings. The pair is 9-4 this season, with a three-match winning streak.
Kansas holds a 4-2 edge over the Cougars in six prior meetings. They have won four straight matches against Houston, with the last three coming by 4-3 scores.
The Jayhawks earned a one-point victory over Houston last season, on Feb. 14, 2014 at the John E. Hoff Courts. Vogasari and Kordolaimi each took singles wins for the Cougars.
Houston also lost a 4-3 decision to Kansas on March 17, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nev. Then-freshman Charlotte Phillips scored a doubles victory in the match.
| UP NEXT FOR THE COUGARS |
Houston will host Missouri on Friday, Feb. 20 before welcoming No. 45 Utah two days later. Both matches will take place at the Houston Country Club, and live scoring for both contests is available at UHCougars.com/TennisScores .
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Players Mentioned
