Photo by: Gregg Ellman
Three ladies claim titles at Rice Invitational
9/23/2018 7:55:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Final Results
HOUSTON - The UT Arlington women's tennis team had a big weekend in Houston with three ladies claiming flight titles at the 2018 Rice Invitational, a tournament featuring powers from within the Texas Region and beyond.Â
Lucia Natal, Almudena Boza and Carla Pons all claimed singles titles on Sunday afternoon in the completion of the three-day tournament.Â
"I am very proud of all of our women this weekend in how we performed," UTA coach Diego Benitez said. "The team battled with mother nature all weekend and dealt with time changes just about every round. They handled it really well and came out ready to fight in each match. This was a great weekend for UTA tennis."
Natal navigated her way through Flight 3 without dropping a set. Her weekend started on Friday with a win over crosstown rival Sarai Monarrez-Yesaki (6-3, 6-4) from SMU, then topped Priya Niezgoda of Rice to advance into the final. She'd make quick work of USF's Evelyne Tiron in a 6-2, 6-2 win.Â
The path for Almudena Boza was a bit tricker with wins over SFA's Armelle Cerdan (3-6, 6-0, 6-2) and a straight set victory over Oklahoma's Alli Hodges. She'd take the final 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 in Flight 8.Â
Flight 9 saw two Mavericks reach the final. Carla Pons followed up a big weekend last week in Midland by taking the flight. She defeated SMU's Emma Pieroni (6-1, 6-2), Sam Houston States Roos Gerritsen (0-6, 6-1, 6-1) and teammate Nanaka Takeuchi in a closer 7-6, 7-5 finish. Takeuchi topped opponents from McNeese State and SFA on her path to the final.Â
"It is always tough when you play a teammate," Benitez said. "But to do so in a final means that you have had a lot of success to get there. I am really happy in how we represented UTA this weekend."
The women played a strong doubles tournament as well. Natal and Takeuchi teamed up to top Alabama's squad in Flight 3 doubles with a 7-6 finish, the pair rallied from a semifinal defeat to take a consolation win over SFA (6-2).
Boza and Pons advanced to the Flight 4 doubles final with wins over NW State (6-3) and Texas State (6-2), but the duo couldn't top USF's squad in the final in a 6-2 setback.Â
The Mavs continue their trek across Texas when the team travels to the SMU Invitational on Oct. 5-7.Â
HOUSTON - The UT Arlington women's tennis team had a big weekend in Houston with three ladies claiming flight titles at the 2018 Rice Invitational, a tournament featuring powers from within the Texas Region and beyond.Â
Lucia Natal, Almudena Boza and Carla Pons all claimed singles titles on Sunday afternoon in the completion of the three-day tournament.Â
"I am very proud of all of our women this weekend in how we performed," UTA coach Diego Benitez said. "The team battled with mother nature all weekend and dealt with time changes just about every round. They handled it really well and came out ready to fight in each match. This was a great weekend for UTA tennis."
Natal navigated her way through Flight 3 without dropping a set. Her weekend started on Friday with a win over crosstown rival Sarai Monarrez-Yesaki (6-3, 6-4) from SMU, then topped Priya Niezgoda of Rice to advance into the final. She'd make quick work of USF's Evelyne Tiron in a 6-2, 6-2 win.Â
The path for Almudena Boza was a bit tricker with wins over SFA's Armelle Cerdan (3-6, 6-0, 6-2) and a straight set victory over Oklahoma's Alli Hodges. She'd take the final 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 in Flight 8.Â
Flight 9 saw two Mavericks reach the final. Carla Pons followed up a big weekend last week in Midland by taking the flight. She defeated SMU's Emma Pieroni (6-1, 6-2), Sam Houston States Roos Gerritsen (0-6, 6-1, 6-1) and teammate Nanaka Takeuchi in a closer 7-6, 7-5 finish. Takeuchi topped opponents from McNeese State and SFA on her path to the final.Â
"It is always tough when you play a teammate," Benitez said. "But to do so in a final means that you have had a lot of success to get there. I am really happy in how we represented UTA this weekend."
The women played a strong doubles tournament as well. Natal and Takeuchi teamed up to top Alabama's squad in Flight 3 doubles with a 7-6 finish, the pair rallied from a semifinal defeat to take a consolation win over SFA (6-2).
Boza and Pons advanced to the Flight 4 doubles final with wins over NW State (6-3) and Texas State (6-2), but the duo couldn't top USF's squad in the final in a 6-2 setback.Â
The Mavs continue their trek across Texas when the team travels to the SMU Invitational on Oct. 5-7.Â
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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