All In

DENTON — The North Texas tennis team begins its 14th season under head coach Sujay Lama on Friday as they host Stephen F. Austin. On Friday, Lama will being the aim to lead what will be one of his youngest teams ever to the program's fourth conference champion in the last nine years.

Five newcomers, four freshmen and just three women who are either junior or seniors make up this season's squad. And Lama is looking for everyone, from veterans to newcomers to be locked in and all in committed to get better every day and peak at the end of the season.

"We are a force when our heart beats together and fight for each other," Lama said. Our mantra this year is 'All In', which means in order for us to succeed, each member of this team must be fully invested in everything we do and have selfless love for one another."

The Mean Green return three members from last season's team that reached the semifinals of the C-USA Championship.

Seniors Alexandra Heczey — the program's winngest active player — Haruka Sasaki and junior Nidhi Surapaneni have been tasked with leading the team on the court as it is now fully theirs.

Learn more about each individual player with the above Adobe Spark Page.

North Texas opens the 2020 schedule with four straight home matches.
JAN. 17 vs. Stephen F. Austin (2PM)
JAN. 19 vs. New Mexico State (1PM)
JAN. 25 vs. Lamar (TBA)
FEB. 1 vs. Northwestern State (TBA)

Due to the predicted weather, Friday's season-opener has been moved to the Mean Green's indoor facility in Plano and is located at 7100 Preston Road Plano, Texas 75024.
In total, UNT will host 12 matches this season, including Wichita State, South Florida, Memphis and UT Arlington (senior Day).

"Our mantra this year is 'All In', which means in order for us to succeed, each member of this team must be fully invested in everything we do and have selfless love for one another," Lama said. "The key to the success of this team is to keep improving with each practice and dual match. We have a deep talented group of ladies who are gelling both on and off the court. The goal is to building each day so we can peak for conference and the NCAA Tournament."

TEXAS REGIONAL RECAP
With five of the eight women being a sophomore or freshman, the Mean Green are the youngest team in Conference USA. But in the early fall season that didn't slow them down to finding success.

At the 2019 ITA Texas Regional this fall, where the Mean Green over the last five years have become serious contenders including winning the doubles championship last year, this year they brought one of the state's youngest teams and continued to remind opponents that they were one of the top programs in the state.

North Texas finished the tournament with 10 singles wins and Surapaneni and freshman Kexuan Zhou each reached the quarterfinals of the singles consolation bracket. After losing in the first round of the singles draw, Surapaneni and Zhou bounced back to win three straight matches each in the consolation bracket and reach the quarterfinal round. The resilience they showed to lead a youthful team excited the coaches for the rest of the year. Throughout the three-day tournament for the Mean Green, UNT coaches saw the young team grow and find ways to compete against some of the region's toughest competition. Other notable wins during the tournament included Hummel defeating Texas' Gabby Cusano. Ponomarev defeated Conference USA foe Kylee Kato from UTSA in straight sets. In doubles, Surapaneni and Ponomareva beat a Houston doubles team, 8-2, in the first round of the doubles draw.

CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT DOMINANCE
Over the past decade, North Texas, Rice, Old Dominion and FIU have dominated league play. The Mean Green have reached the semifinal round of the conference tournament eight of the last 10 years, including last year when they reached it as the sixth-seed and upset FIU on their way to the semifinals. Surapaneni helped fuel the Mean Green comeback as they beat the Panthers, 4-3.

UNT has won at least one match in 13 straight conference tournaments.

ACADEMIC DOMINANCE
The Mean Green tennis team has been recognized by the NCAA for its academic performance three years in a row, receiving an Academic Progress Rate score in the top 10% in the nation. All three years, UNT has received a perfect score of 1,000.

The APR is an annual scorecard of academic achievement calculated for all Division I sports teams. The APR measures eligibility, graduation and retention each semester or academic term and provides a clear picture of the ongoing academic performance for each team in every sport. All teams must meet an academic threshold of 930 to qualify for the postseason and can face penalties for continued low academic performance. The most recent APRs are multiyear rates based on scores from the 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 academic years.

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Players Mentioned

Alexandra Heczey

Haruka Sasaki

Nidhi Surapaneni

Kexuan Zhou