Women’s tennis goes 2-1 over weekend

By Evan Neustater     3/11/14 5:33pm

The Rice University women’s tennis team continues to have a season with mixed results. Last weekend, the team beat New Mexico State University 5-2, then lost to Tulsa University 4-1.

The Rice University women’s tennis team continues to have a season with mixed results. Last weekend, the team beat New Mexico State University 5-2, then lost to Tulsa University 4-1. The Owls bounced back from the loss with a 7-0 shutout victory over Texas State University, leading to the current overall record of 7-5. This weekend, Rice will have a chance to improve that record further, and perhaps build up a winning streak, in New Orleans, La., where the Owls will play Georgia State University on Saturday, March 15 and Tulane University on Sunday, March 16.

Head Coach Elizabeth Schmidt said she was pleased with Rice’s performance against Texas State, especially given the disappointment over the Tulsa loss. 

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“I was happy [with] the way we came out and played today,” Schmidt said. “It seems like a long time since our last match. Part of that was the disappointment we felt after the Tulsa match; we didn’t play our best tennis that day. We have been wanting to get back out there. On top of that, with spring break, we’ve had a little more downtime than usual.”

Schmidt also said the team has been exemplary in doubles matches, which it has been striving for in practice.

“We controlled the doubles from start to finish,” Schmidt said. “It was nice to see them be able to implement some of the things we’ve been working on in the match.”

Junior Natalie Beazant said the close losses this season are due to the steep competition the team has been facing in order to improve their play and rank. 

“I think that we have had a solid schedule this year, something that we need if we want to become even more of a threat nationally,” Beazant said. “This has meant that we have had some close, tough matches. It’s just a matter of us converting those matches, something I am confident we will start doing in the second half of the season.”

Beazant also said she thinks Georgia State will present the team with new competition. 

“We’re excited to go to [New Orleans] this weekend to play Georgia State,” said Beazant. “I don’t think we have played them before, so it will be good to see some more competition.”

Beazant said the recent success against Texas State will aid the team’s confidence this weekend.

“The win over Texas State was a good match for everyone,” Beazant said. “Everyone on the team got a win, so that was really good preparation going into this weekend.” 

Schmidt said she likes the way Rice played with intensity and consistency against Texas State, and she hopes the team can continue to play at a high level. 

“We really took it to them today, from start to finish,” Schmidt said. “That’s something I’d like to see us continue to do moving forward.”

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