Friday, April 15
College Station
2:30 PM
Texas A&M
vs
LSU
Photo by: Texas A&M Athletics
No. 19 Texas A&M, No. 18 LSU clash in season finale
Apr 14, 2016 | Women's Tennis
No. 19 Texas A&M (14-9, 6-6 SEC) vs. No. 18 LSU (17-9, 6-6 SEC)
Friday, April 15, 2:30 p.m.
George P. Mitchell Tennis Center, College Station, Texas
Promotion: Texas A&M students get in free by showing their student I.D.
Tickets | Live Stats | Live Video
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The 19th-ranked Texas A&M women's tennis team will celebrate Senior Day on Friday as the Aggies close out the regular season with a crucial match against 18th-ranked LSU at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center.
The contest against the Tigers will begin no earlier than 2:30 p.m. and will follow the conclusion of the men's tennis match between Texas A&M and Abilene Christian, which begins at noon. At 2:15 p.m., A&M women's head coach Mark Weaver and the team will honor seniors Ines Deheza, Stefania Hristov and Anna Mamalat in the players' lounge, and fans in attendance are welcome to attend.
It will be a full day of tennis at the Mitchell Tennis Center, as the Aggie men also play host to LSU at 6 p.m. as part of a men's doubleheader. Either a men's ticket or women's ticket is valid for admission to all three matches. In addition, Texas A&M students get in free by showing their student I.D.
"It's hard to believe that Friday will be the last regular season match of the year," Weaver said, "and it's even harder to believe that we are honoring our final remaining players from our 2013 NCAA Championship finalist team on our Senior Day. The time has flown by to say the least. I know our girls will be extremely motivated and excited to go out and represent our group of seniors on this special day."
Texas A&M (14-9, 6-6 SEC) and LSU (17-9 6-6 SEC) enter the finale tied for sixth place in the SEC standings. Each team will not only be vying to better its seeding in the SEC Tournament, which begins next week in Baton Rouge, but they also will be aiming to increase their chances of hosting NCAA Championship first and second rounds.
"This is definitely a big match for both us and LSU as we head into the SEC Tournament," Weaver said. "It will also have a big impact in terms of who is one of the top 16 teams that will have the opportunity to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Championships. The good news to that is we have had a ton of difficult, pressure-filled matches all throughout the year, and I truly believe that we are playing our best tennis of the season."
The Aggies, 10-2 in home matches, went 1-1 last week, blanking No. 75 Tennessee, 7-0, and falling to then-No. 4 Georgia, 5-2, at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
LSU, 4-3 in away matches, also went 1-1 last week, falling to the Bulldogs, 5-2, and defeating Tennessee, 5-2, in Baton Rouge.
The Aggies are led in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association singles rankings by junior Saska Gavrilovska, who climbed three spots to No. 32 in the nation. In doubles, Eva Paalma and Rachel Pierson moved up two spots and check in at team-high No. 30, their highest ranking of the spring. In addition, Rutuja Bhosale, who is No. 105 in singles, is No. 69 in doubles with Mamalat. The duo is riding a five-match win streak and is a team-best 20-5 overall, including 12-3 in dual matches only and 6-1 in SEC matches.
Deheza sports a team-best 8-3 mark in SEC singles matches, and she is tied with Bhosale and freshman Domenica Gonzalez for most wins overall (18) and most wins in dual matches only (12).
Joana Vale Costa leads LSU with a team-high No. 20 ITA singles ranking, and Jessica Golovin is No. 57. Vale Costa is No. 60 in doubles with partner Ryann Foster.
Abigail Owens enters the match against the Aggies riding a team-best six-match win streak in singles and leading the Tigers with a 29-7 overall record. She is 20-4 in dual matches, having played all but three matches at the No. 5 position, where she is 11-0 in SEC matches only.
A&M owns a 26-11 lead in the all-time series against LSU, including a 12-4 record in matches played in College Station. Last year, A&M won its seventh consecutive match against the Tigers with a 4-3 regular-season victory in Baton Rouge, but LSU upended the favored Aggies, 4-3, in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament to post its first win against A&M since the 2009 season.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M women's tennis. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M women's tennis team on Twitter by following @AggieWTEN or on Facebook at Facebook.com/AggieWomensTennis.
Texas A&M Pronunciation Guide:
Rutuja Bhosale roo-too-jah bo-slay
Ines Deheza ee-NAY de-HAY-za
Saska Gavrilovska saush-ka gav-ril-ahv-ska
Stefania Hristov steff-on-ya RIS-tov
Anna Mamalat anna MAM-ah-LOT
Eva Paalma A-va paul-ma
Friday, April 15, 2:30 p.m.
George P. Mitchell Tennis Center, College Station, Texas
Promotion: Texas A&M students get in free by showing their student I.D.
Tickets | Live Stats | Live Video
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The 19th-ranked Texas A&M women's tennis team will celebrate Senior Day on Friday as the Aggies close out the regular season with a crucial match against 18th-ranked LSU at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center.
The contest against the Tigers will begin no earlier than 2:30 p.m. and will follow the conclusion of the men's tennis match between Texas A&M and Abilene Christian, which begins at noon. At 2:15 p.m., A&M women's head coach Mark Weaver and the team will honor seniors Ines Deheza, Stefania Hristov and Anna Mamalat in the players' lounge, and fans in attendance are welcome to attend.
It will be a full day of tennis at the Mitchell Tennis Center, as the Aggie men also play host to LSU at 6 p.m. as part of a men's doubleheader. Either a men's ticket or women's ticket is valid for admission to all three matches. In addition, Texas A&M students get in free by showing their student I.D.
"It's hard to believe that Friday will be the last regular season match of the year," Weaver said, "and it's even harder to believe that we are honoring our final remaining players from our 2013 NCAA Championship finalist team on our Senior Day. The time has flown by to say the least. I know our girls will be extremely motivated and excited to go out and represent our group of seniors on this special day."
Texas A&M (14-9, 6-6 SEC) and LSU (17-9 6-6 SEC) enter the finale tied for sixth place in the SEC standings. Each team will not only be vying to better its seeding in the SEC Tournament, which begins next week in Baton Rouge, but they also will be aiming to increase their chances of hosting NCAA Championship first and second rounds.
"This is definitely a big match for both us and LSU as we head into the SEC Tournament," Weaver said. "It will also have a big impact in terms of who is one of the top 16 teams that will have the opportunity to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Championships. The good news to that is we have had a ton of difficult, pressure-filled matches all throughout the year, and I truly believe that we are playing our best tennis of the season."
The Aggies, 10-2 in home matches, went 1-1 last week, blanking No. 75 Tennessee, 7-0, and falling to then-No. 4 Georgia, 5-2, at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
LSU, 4-3 in away matches, also went 1-1 last week, falling to the Bulldogs, 5-2, and defeating Tennessee, 5-2, in Baton Rouge.
The Aggies are led in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association singles rankings by junior Saska Gavrilovska, who climbed three spots to No. 32 in the nation. In doubles, Eva Paalma and Rachel Pierson moved up two spots and check in at team-high No. 30, their highest ranking of the spring. In addition, Rutuja Bhosale, who is No. 105 in singles, is No. 69 in doubles with Mamalat. The duo is riding a five-match win streak and is a team-best 20-5 overall, including 12-3 in dual matches only and 6-1 in SEC matches.
Deheza sports a team-best 8-3 mark in SEC singles matches, and she is tied with Bhosale and freshman Domenica Gonzalez for most wins overall (18) and most wins in dual matches only (12).
Joana Vale Costa leads LSU with a team-high No. 20 ITA singles ranking, and Jessica Golovin is No. 57. Vale Costa is No. 60 in doubles with partner Ryann Foster.
Abigail Owens enters the match against the Aggies riding a team-best six-match win streak in singles and leading the Tigers with a 29-7 overall record. She is 20-4 in dual matches, having played all but three matches at the No. 5 position, where she is 11-0 in SEC matches only.
A&M owns a 26-11 lead in the all-time series against LSU, including a 12-4 record in matches played in College Station. Last year, A&M won its seventh consecutive match against the Tigers with a 4-3 regular-season victory in Baton Rouge, but LSU upended the favored Aggies, 4-3, in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament to post its first win against A&M since the 2009 season.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M women's tennis. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M women's tennis team on Twitter by following @AggieWTEN or on Facebook at Facebook.com/AggieWomensTennis.
Texas A&M Pronunciation Guide:
Rutuja Bhosale roo-too-jah bo-slay
Ines Deheza ee-NAY de-HAY-za
Saska Gavrilovska saush-ka gav-ril-ahv-ska
Stefania Hristov steff-on-ya RIS-tov
Anna Mamalat anna MAM-ah-LOT
Eva Paalma A-va paul-ma
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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