Tennis Grounds Owls 4-2 on Senior Day

HOUSTON – The University of Houston Tennis program picked up its second straight victory in as many days and closed out its regular season with a 4-2 Senior Day victory over No. 56 Rice on Saturday afternoon at the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility.

Houston (13-8) won the doubles point along with singles victories on courts one, three and four while Rice (10-8) saw its comeback bid fall short after securing two singles points on courts two and five.

The victory marks the first win against Rice since 2003 when the Cougars won 4-3 at home.

In doubles play, Rice captured the first victory as Darya Schwartzman and Saara Orav won 6-1 against junior Blanca Cortijo Parreno and sophomore Maria Dzemeshkevich.

Freshman Sophie Schouten and junior Laura Slisane later evened out doubles play after defeating Diae El Jardi and Allison Zipoli 6-4 on court one.

The Cougars secured the doubles point as senior Azul Pedemonti and freshman Sonya Kovalenko ousted Maria Budin and Federica Trevisan 6-4 on court two.

In singles play, Pedemonti wrapped up her Senior Day in dominant fashion with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Schwartzman on court three to give Houston a 2-0 lead.

Rice cut the deficit in half as it took the match on court two 6-3, 6-3.

Slisane picked up another singles point for the Cougars after a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Zipoli to give Houston a 3-1 lead.

The remaining three courts saw the trailing side even out the sets at 1-1 and force a third set.

Rice picked up another singles point on court five in a three-set 7(8)-6(6), 2-6, 2-6 win to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Several minutes later, freshman Gabriela Cortes came back from one set down and clutched the match and team victories after a three-set battle 1-6, 6-4, 7(9)-6(7) against Budin.

UP NEXT
Houston will head to Orlando, Fla., for the 2023 American Athletic Conference Championships held April 19-22 at the USTA National Campus.

Based on the seeding, No. 6-11 will begin action in the first round on Wednesday, April 19. No. 1-5 will head straight to quarterfinals on Thursday, April 20. Seeds for the conference championships are determined by the latest ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings.

RESULTS
Houston 4, #56 Rice 2

Singles competition
1. Laura Slisane (HOU) def. Allison Zipoli (RICE) 7-6, 6-3
2. Diae El Jardi (RICE) def. Maria Dzemeshkevich (HOU) 6-3, 6-3
3. Azul Pedemonti (HOU) def. Darya Schwartzman (RICE) 6-4, 6-1
4. Gabriela Cortes (HOU) def. Maria Budin (RICE) 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (9-7)
5. Saara Orav (RICE) def. Sophie Schouten (HOU) 6-7 (6-8), 6-2, 6-2
6. Sonya Kovalenko (HOU) vs. Marte Lambrecht (RICE) 7-6 (7-4), 5-7, 1-2, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Sophie Schouten/Laura Slisane (HOU) def. Diae El Jardi/Allison Zipoli (RICE) 6-4
2. Azul Pedemonti/Sonya Kovalenko (HOU) def. Maria Budin/Federica Trevisan (RICE) 6-4
3. Darya Schwartzman/Saara Orav (RICE) def. B. Cortijo Parreno/Maria Dzemeshkevich (HOU) 6-1

Match Notes:
Rice 10-8
Houston 13-8

Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (3,2,1,5,4)

SUPPORT HOUSTON RISE
Join Houston Rise, a $150 million fundraising campaign for Houston Athletics dedicated to championship success in the Big 12 Conference. Every Houston Rise contribution prepares our Cougars to compete and win when we start Big 12 competition in July 2023.

Click here to rise and be counted.
JOIN the CENTER COURT CLUB
Fans are invited to join the Center Court Club to support Houston Tennis. Center Court Club members provide financial support directly to Houston Tennis for needs beyond the program's operating budget.

For more information and to donate, fans can click here.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarTennis on Twitter and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarTennis or on the team's Instagram page at @uhcougartennis.

– UHCougars.com –

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Next Event

Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Gabriela Cortes

Blanca Cortijo Parreno

Maria Dzemeshkevich

Sonya Kovalenko

Azul Pedemonti

Sophie Schouten

Laura Slisane