In a heartbreaking defeat, the Texas women’s tennis team saw their impressive season come to an end in the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 against No. 8 UCLA. The Longhorns, ranked No. 9 in the tournament, fell to the Bruins in a 4-1 decision, unable to overcome their tough competition.
The match started off on a rough note for Texas, losing the doubles point in a tiebreaker and struggling to secure wins in singles matches. The only victory of the day came from graduate student Tanya Sasnouskaya on court four, preventing a shutout for the team. Despite their efforts, UCLA managed to secure wins on courts one, three, and six to advance to the Elite Eight.
Despite the disappointment of their tournament exit, Texas had a successful regular season, finishing with a 23-6 overall record and a 12-1 conference record. The team’s only conference loss came against No. 1 Oklahoma State, and they ended the regular season on a seven-game win streak.
With five seniors or graduate students set to leave the team, Texas will need to rely on their younger members to lead them to success in the future. The team had a different postseason experience this year compared to their back-to-back national championship wins in 2021 and 2022, but they will look to regroup and come back stronger next season.