University of North Texas Athletics
Tuesday, February 4
Huntsville, TX
University of North Texas
4
at
3
Sam Houston State
Photo by: Rick Yeatts Photography
Mean Green Stay Hot, Remain Undfeated
2/4/2020 6:43:00 PM | Women's Tennis
HUNTSVILLE, Texas — The North Texas tennis team is still undefeated and improved to 5-0 on the year after Tuesday's 4-3 victory at Sam Houston State. The Mean Green clinched Tuesday's victory after taking a 4-2 lead.
SHSU is just a couple weeks removed from holding their own at No. 17 Texas A&M.
"Our energy and determination was outstanding," said head coach Sujay Lama. "We played our best double match of the year. That gave us a huge lift going into singles."
Playing in its first dual road match, North Texas rolled through doubles play on Thursday, picking up wins at No. 1 and No. 2 to clinch the early point. The early momentum carried into singles play for North Texas who battled the tough Bearkat opponents back-and-forth until freshman Sophia Hummel clinched the victory with a straight set victory and the No. 6 spot in the lineup.
A big performance on Tuesday came from fellow freshman Kexuan Zhou who put UNT (5-0) in the lead with a straight set victory. Zhou's victory set up Hummel to put it away for the Mean Green.
"I was in control of my match," Zhou said. "There were some games where I made mistakes but the mistakes weren't bad. I was just trying to play more aggressive. I think my teammates also did a great job today and everyone is trying their best. Today, everyone was cheering for each other, which makes me feel so good. It helps me a lot when I play."
UNT's newcomers carried the Mean Green on Tuesday. Its three singles wins came from two of its freshmen and sophomore transfer Maria Ponomareva.
This is North Texas' best start to a season in over 14 years. And after Tuesday's road victory it's clear this team is for real.
The Mean Green will have another great test this weekend as they travel to Tucson, Arizona, to face Arizona and Kansas State. Under Lama, the Mean Green have had success against UA and K-State. But playing them away from the friendly confines of the Waranch Tennis Complex will be a great challenge.
"We want to continue building on the victory and look forward to competing against two good opponents this weekend," Lama said.
SINGLES
1. Sahaja Yamalapalli (SHSU) def. HECZEY, Alexandra (UNT) 6-3, 6-1
2. Isidora Zivkovic (SHSU) def. SURAPANENI, Nidhi (UNT) 6-1, 6-4
3. Constandena Nicolaou (SHSU) def. BADWY, Hala Khaled (UNT) 6-4, 7-6
4. PONOMAREVA, Maria (UNT) def. Lusine Chobanyan (SHSU) 6-0, 6-2
5. ZHOU, Kexuan (UNT) def. Emma Goedkoop (SHSU) 6-4, 6-3
6. HUMMEL, Sophia (UNT) def. Petra Kaszas (SHSU) 7-5, 7-6
DOUBLES
1. HECZEY, Alexandra/BADWY, Hala Khaled (UNT) def. Roos Gerritsen/Lusine Chobanyan (SHSU) 6-3
2. SURAPANENI, Nidhi/PONOMAREVA, Maria (UNT) def. Sahaja Yamalapalli/Emma Goedkoop (SHSU) 6-2
3. Petra Kaszas/Constandena Nicolaou (SHSU) vs. ZHOU, Kexuan/HUMMEL, Sophia (UNT) 4-5, unfinished
SHSU is just a couple weeks removed from holding their own at No. 17 Texas A&M.
"Our energy and determination was outstanding," said head coach Sujay Lama. "We played our best double match of the year. That gave us a huge lift going into singles."
Playing in its first dual road match, North Texas rolled through doubles play on Thursday, picking up wins at No. 1 and No. 2 to clinch the early point. The early momentum carried into singles play for North Texas who battled the tough Bearkat opponents back-and-forth until freshman Sophia Hummel clinched the victory with a straight set victory and the No. 6 spot in the lineup.
A big performance on Tuesday came from fellow freshman Kexuan Zhou who put UNT (5-0) in the lead with a straight set victory. Zhou's victory set up Hummel to put it away for the Mean Green.
"I was in control of my match," Zhou said. "There were some games where I made mistakes but the mistakes weren't bad. I was just trying to play more aggressive. I think my teammates also did a great job today and everyone is trying their best. Today, everyone was cheering for each other, which makes me feel so good. It helps me a lot when I play."
UNT's newcomers carried the Mean Green on Tuesday. Its three singles wins came from two of its freshmen and sophomore transfer Maria Ponomareva.
This is North Texas' best start to a season in over 14 years. And after Tuesday's road victory it's clear this team is for real.
The Mean Green will have another great test this weekend as they travel to Tucson, Arizona, to face Arizona and Kansas State. Under Lama, the Mean Green have had success against UA and K-State. But playing them away from the friendly confines of the Waranch Tennis Complex will be a great challenge.
"We want to continue building on the victory and look forward to competing against two good opponents this weekend," Lama said.
SINGLES
1. Sahaja Yamalapalli (SHSU) def. HECZEY, Alexandra (UNT) 6-3, 6-1
2. Isidora Zivkovic (SHSU) def. SURAPANENI, Nidhi (UNT) 6-1, 6-4
3. Constandena Nicolaou (SHSU) def. BADWY, Hala Khaled (UNT) 6-4, 7-6
4. PONOMAREVA, Maria (UNT) def. Lusine Chobanyan (SHSU) 6-0, 6-2
5. ZHOU, Kexuan (UNT) def. Emma Goedkoop (SHSU) 6-4, 6-3
6. HUMMEL, Sophia (UNT) def. Petra Kaszas (SHSU) 7-5, 7-6
DOUBLES
1. HECZEY, Alexandra/BADWY, Hala Khaled (UNT) def. Roos Gerritsen/Lusine Chobanyan (SHSU) 6-3
2. SURAPANENI, Nidhi/PONOMAREVA, Maria (UNT) def. Sahaja Yamalapalli/Emma Goedkoop (SHSU) 6-2
3. Petra Kaszas/Constandena Nicolaou (SHSU) vs. ZHOU, Kexuan/HUMMEL, Sophia (UNT) 4-5, unfinished
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1
#1 Singles Match
12
31
Sahaja Yamalapalli / 0 [SHSU]
66
#2 Singles Match
12
14
Isidora Zivkovic / 0 [SHSU]
66
#3 Singles Match
12
46
Constandena Nicolaou / 0 [SHSU]
67
#4 Singles Match
12
66
Lusine Chobanyan / 0 [SHSU]
02
#5 Singles Match
12
66
Emma Goedkoop / 0 [SHSU]
43
#6 Singles Match
12
77
Petra Kaszas / 0 [SHSU]
56
Order of Finish:
1,2,4,5,6,3
Players Mentioned
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