The Aggie women’s tennis team took to the courts for a pair of matches in Texas over the weekend. NM State opened its weekend on Friday as they fell 6-1 to Texas State in San Marcos, Texas, before dropping a Sunday match to Incarnate Word, 5-2. With the pair of losses, the Aggies fall to 2-6 on the season as they prepare for the program’s first ever CUSA match on Friday, March 1.
Source: NM State Athletics Media Relations
MATCH ONE | NM State 1, Texas State 6
The Aggies began their weekend on Friday at the Bobcat Tennis Center where they were dominant in doubles play to start the day. Natsuki Nishimura and Anna Pinaieva first picked up a 6-0 win over Jaden Chan and Mae McCutcheon to mark their second 6-0 victory in the last three matches. Whitney Moon and Lisa Zhu also teamed up for the first time this season and managed a 6-1 victory over Texas State’s Sofia Fortuno.
Unfortunately, the Aggies success in doubles play did not carry over to singles action as the Aggies lost matches on lines one through five while the Bobcats secured a sixth win by default at No. 6 – allowing them to pick up the win.
MATCH TWO | NM State 2, Incarnate Word 5
Two days later, the Aggies drove over to San Antonio and collided with Incarnate Word. Once again, the newly formed tandem of Lisa Zhu and Whitney Moon paired nicely as they earned a 7-5 win over Estefania Gonzalez and Ine Lamprecht. However, with a win by default at No. 3 and a 6-3 win at No. 1, the Cardinals claimed the doubles point.
Moon then carried this momentum over to singles play as she earned a three-set victory over McKenzy Byfield – winning both the second and third set by a score of 6-0 after dropping the first set in a tiebreaker. Elsewhere, Natsuki Nishimurapicked up her fourth singles win of the season to tie with Anna Pinaieva for most among Aggies this season. Like Moon, Nishimura had to earn her win as she split the first two sets before claiming a 6-3 win in the deciding third set.
UP NEXT
The Aggies will now return to the friendly confines of the NM State Tennis Center as they host LA Tech on Friday, March 1, in what will be the program’s first official Conference USA match. Following the matchup with the Bulldogs, the Aggies will welcome a former league opponent as Abilene Christian visits Las Cruces on Saturday, March 2. Both matches are scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m.
