LOGAN, Utah – Utah State women's tennis (1-1, 0-0 MW) will host Akron (4-0, 0-0 MAC) on Friday, Feb. 1, at 11 a.m., at the Sports Academy & Racquet Club, followed by a road match at Idaho State (0-1, 0-0 Big Sky) on Sunday, Feb. 3, at noon, at Reed Gym.
Overall in singles, USU is led by junior Lucy Octave, who is 1-0 at the No. 4 spot, followed by freshmen Annaliese County and Sidnee Lavatai, who are both 1-1, while junior Rhoda Tanui, sophomore Alexandra Taylor and freshman Gabrielle Dekkers sit at 0-2. In doubles, Lavatai and Dekkers are 1-0 at the No. 3 spot, Octave and County are 1-1 at the No. 2 spot and Tanui and Taylor are 0-1 at the No. 1 spot.
Utah State and Akron have split the series at 1-1 as the Aggies won the first meeting four years ago, 4-3, while the Zips won last year's neutral court match in East Lansing, Mich., with a 5-2 score. The Zips are 4-0, most notably capturing 6-1 wins against St. Bonaventure and Niagara in a doubleheader hosted by the Bonnies. In singles play, senior Luisa Echeverry is 4-0, while junior Rita Pedroso and sophomore Miruna Vasilescu are 3-0. Redshirt senior Sophia Geier, senior Clara Flores and freshman Enya Forgaci are all 2-0, sophomore Anna Uljanov is 2-1, freshmen Holland Long and Alexis Steer are 1-1 and freshman Claudia Cecilia Rosas Garcias is 0-1. In doubles, Pedroso and Vasilescu are 3-1, Geier and Uljanov are 2-0, Echeverry and Forgaci are 1-0 and Forgaci and Long 1-0.
Utah State leads Idaho State, which is USU's longest-standing opponent, 33-28, including winning the last 25 matchups and 16 in a row at home. ISU participated in four tournaments during the fall, including three where the Aggies also competed at in the Bedford Cup, Idaho State Invite and ITA Regionals. In the fall, the series was split in both singles, 4-4, and doubles, 3-3. In the Idaho State Invitational, Tanui beat Botes, 6-0, 4-6, 6-2, Lavatai beat junior Melissa Coburn, 6-4, 6-4, Taylor beat junior Madison Fenske, 7-5, 5-7, 10-3 and County defeated Coburn, 7-5, 6-2. In doubles, junior Hannah Jones and Taylor beat Fenske and Coburn, 8-4, Taylor and Lavatai had a 6-0 victory over Andrea Osborn and junior Angela Walker and Tanui and County edged out a victory over Coburn and Fenske, 7-5.
Last season, ISU finished with an 9-13 record. In singles, the Bengals were led by junior Louise-Mare Botes finished 16-4, while Walker went 12-10. In doubles, Coburn and Fenske was 9-7.
Fans can follow USU's women's tennis team on Twitter @USUWomensTennis, on Facebook at UtahStateWomensTennis or on Instagram @USUWomensTennis. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter at @USUAthletics, on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on Instagram at @USUAthletics.
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