Texas women’s tennis came out on top against No. 19 NC State and ACU in a series of home matches last weekend.
Following two wins in the ITA kickoff weekend against Maryland and Baylor, the Longhorns took down the Wolfpack 4-3 and swept the Wildcats 5-0.
Texas took the victory over NC State in a third-set tiebreaker in the finals singles match as junior Vivian Ovrootsky defeated Jasmine Conway 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-4). The Longhorns held a brief 2-1 lead over the Wolfpack after wins from senior Sabina Zeynalova and freshman Carmen Herea.
The series got close when Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week Eszter Meri dropped a three-set matchup against NC State’s Maddy Zampardo.
In the doubles, the Wolfpack got past the Longhorns 2-1 as the Sabina Zeynalova/Ashton Bowers and Ariana Anazagasty-Pursoo/Eszter Meri duos both dropped their matches. Despite the losses, Texas still had the best overall result.
Against unranked ACU, the Longhorns didn’t sweat.
Three matches remained unfinished. Meri was one point away from securing the win over Masha Vrsalovic when play stopped, while freshman Salma Drugdova also led her game when play finished. Drugdova’s doubles match with Herea stopped as the Longhorns led the ACU Vrsalovic and Alice Klinteby duo 4-3.
The 5-0 sweep over Abilene Christian was Texas’ last matchup before heading to Illinois for the ITA National Indoor Championship. The Longhorns claimed their ticket to the championship after a 4-3 win over Baylor the weekend before.
The first opponent on Texas’ way to the national championship will be reigning national champions Oklahoma State, who defeated the Longhorns a year ago in the tournament’s second round. The winner of the matchup will take on the winner of Texas A&M versus Illinois.
Texas and Oklahoma State will take on the court on Feb. 7 at 3:30 p.m.
