SAN ANTONIO – On Friday, UTSA Women’s Tennis hit the court, returning home after two weeks away. The Roadrunners hosted Sam Houston, nearly sweeping the Bearkats before walking away with a comfortable 6-1 victory. The win improved Head Coach Ki Kroll’s squad to 2-1 on the year, while the visitors dropped to 0-6.
Head Coach Ki Kroll, on the win: “We showed some resilience today. We came out strong in doubles, and carried it into our singles play. I’m very proud of our players; they stepped up and we'll need to carry that energy into our double header on Sunday with NMSU and UIW.”
Match 3
The Roadrunners took their third consecutive doubles point to open the spring campaign, clinching each of the first two courts to finish. A pairing of Natalia Castaneda Guerrero and Guiliana Giardina made quick work of their opposition, sweeping their way to a 6-0 victory. Later on, Laia Tarazona Peyro and Celine Absawi matched their teammates with a win, doing so by a 6-4 margin to leave court two unfinished.
Tarazona Peyro was the first Roadrunner to contribute to two team points on the day, cruising to a 6-1, 6-4 victory on court six. Akari Tomoyose was next to wrap up, notching one of two home wins by the score of 6-3, 6-2. Celine Absawi was the next Roadrunner to do so, clinching her side a singles triumph by the same score, guaranteeing a team victory as she pushed UTSA ahead 4-0.
With the win already under their belt, UTSA’s Guiliana Giardina joined her victorious teammates, prevailing 6-2, 6-3 on court four. After splitting the first two sets on court five, Aoka Nagasawa dominated in a tiebreaker, bypassing a third set in favor of a 10-1 end to the duel. In the most dramatic finish of the afternoon, Natalia Castaneda Guerrero fought her way back into the fight. After taking a 6-1 loss in the opening set, the sophomore stared at a 5-0 hole in frame two. From there, she rattled off seven straight games, storming back to even the affair at one set apiece. With every other court finalized, the two sides opted for a tiebreaker instead of a third set. The second-year Roadrunner took an 8-7 lead in the battle, but dropped each of the final three points as Sam Houston picked up its lone point of the day in a hard-fought 10-8 tiebreaker.
DOUBLES
- Natalia Castaneda Guerrero/Giuliana Giardina (UTSA) def. Aaliyah Hohmann/Anamaria Kurtsikashvili (SHSU) 6-0
- Nayuma Subba/Adithi Venkatakrishnan (SHSU) vs. Akari Tomoyose/Aoka Nagasawa (UTSA) 5-4, unfinished
- Laia Tarazona Peyro/Celine Absawi (UTSA) def. Sara Sadadinovic/Ella Fitcher (SHSU) 6-4
SINGLES
- Nayuma Subba (SHSU) def. Natalia Castaneda Guerrero (UTSA) 6-1, 5-7, 10-8 tiebreaker
- Celine Absawi (UTSA) def. Anamaria Kurtsikashvili (SHSU) 6-3, 6-2
- Akari Tomoyose (UTSA) def. Sara Sadadinovic (SHSU) 6-3, 6-2
- Giuliana Giardina (UTSA) def. Aaliyah Hohmann (SHSU) 6-2, 6-3
- Aoka Nagasawa (UTSA) def. Ella Fitcher (SHSU) 6-3, 4-6, 10-1 tiebreaker
- Laia Tarazona Peyro (UTSA) def. Adithi Venkatakrishnan (SHSU) 6-1, 6-4
FINAL SCORE: UTSA 6, Sam Houston 1
Feb. 6, 2026
UTSA Tennis Center
San Antonio, Texas
Records: UTSA 2-1, SHSU 0-6
Order of finish: Doubles: (1, 3); Singles: (6, 3, 2, 4, 5, 1)
UP NEXT
UTSA will return to action on Sunday, hosting a doubleheader from San Antonio. The Roadrunners will square off with New Mexico State (1-4) before an in-city battle with Incarnate Word (1-2). The matchup with the Aggies is set for 11 a.m., while the Cardinals are slated to hit the court at 3 p.m. Both matches will be available to follow via StatBroadcast.
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