BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M women’s tennis team started the 2021 campaign red-hot on Monday, as the Aggies dismantled the Houston Cougars and Prairie View A&M Lady Panthers in a pair of 7-0 results at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center. The Aggies begin the season with a 2-0 record for the sixth-consecutive year.
A&M opened the day in the doubles competition against the Cougars, where Riley McQuaid and Jessica Anzo kicked things off with a 6-1 win over Azul Pedemonti and Sophie Gerits. Renee McBryde and Katya Townsend followed quickly thereafter with a steady 6-2 win over Laura Slisane and Gabriela Giraldo, securing the doubles point against UH.
In singles play, all six Aggies that saw the court logged straight set victories, led by Anzo’s 6-2, 6-1 win over Pedemonti. Townsend, McBryde, McQuaid and Jayci Goldsmith followed suit with powerful singles play of their own. The No. 64 ranked ITA singles player, Tatiana Makarova, came away with a strong 7-5, 6-2 showing against Mimi Kendall-Woseley.
Perfection in doubles against Prairie View A&M proved to be the order of the evening, as the ITA No. 39 ranked duo of Makarova and Goldsmith came out with a 6-1 win over Victoria Fuenmayor Castillo and Mahogani Green. A pair of 6-0 results from the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles lines secured the doubles point against the Lady Panthers and saw A&M post a perfect 3-0 record in doubles for the match.
The transition to singles saw more of the same dominance, as Goldsmith, McBryde and Anzo each logged their second straight-set singles wins of the day. Dorthea Faa-Hviding beat Ruju Chauhan (6-0, 6-1), Elise Robbins bested Salma Sanchez Villalobos (6-4, 6-4) and Isa DiLaura showed out in her first dual-match singles event at Texas A&M, routing Jessica Lackey 6-0, 6-0.
McBryde managed to complete the day with a perfect 4-0 overall record, defeating both opponents in singles, as well as an unblemished 2-0 mark in doubles play alongside Townsend. Goldsmith and Townsend each added three victories, while DiLaura and Robbins secured their first dual match wins since arriving on the Texas A&M campus. The Aggies pair of 7-0 wins is the first time A&M defeated back-to-back opponents by a 7-0 score since the 2019 season, when the team beat Abilene Christian and SMU.
UP NEXT
Texas A&M women’s tennis prepares to travel to Los Angeles, California, to take part in the 13th annual ITA Kickoff Weekend in the UCLA regional. The Aggies will take on the Washington State Cougars on Saturday, Jan. 23, with UCLA squaring off against Kansas immediately thereafter. The winners of Saturday’s matches will compete on Sunday for a spot in the ITA National Women’s Team Indoors, set to take place in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on Feb. 5-7.
POSTMATCH QUOTES
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Mark Weaver
On the team’s 2-0 start to the season…
“We got our doubleheader in, and we’re leaving the day with a pair of 7-0 wins. We got all nine of our student-athletes in matches today, and everyone got at least one singles and one doubles match in. We didn’t drop a set in any of the singles, and even when we lost a doubles set, we still came away with the doubles point in the match, so there’s nothing really to complain about there. I found a few things that we can work on, so I look forward to heading back in on Wednesday and getting some good practice in.”
On Renee McBryde’s undefeated performance…
“I’m really pleased with Renee. She’s hitting the ball very well right now, very clean. She’s moving very well, and she has a great attitude when she’s on the court. She looks like a really confident player. She got some excellent singles and doubles in today, and we haven’t had a chance to see her compete since last March, so we’re pleased that she has taken care of herself. Her hard work resulted in some great tennis today.”
Sophomore Renee McBryde
On her doubles success alongside Katya Townsend…
“Doubles was good. I played with Katya [Townsend], and we played a lot together during our freshman year, so it was good to be able to get back out on the court with her. As a team, we connect really well. We played aggressive; trying to go after volleys at the net. Especially when Katya is serving, she sets me up so well at the net. As a team we did really well today.”
TENNIS MATCH RESULTS
Texas A&M 7, Houston 0
George P. Mitchell Tennis Center– Bryan-College Station, Texas
Singles Competition
1. #64 Tatiana Makarova (TAMU) def. Mimi Kendall-Woseley (UH) 7-5, 6-2
2. Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) def. Sophie Gerits (UH) 6-3, 6-4
3. Katya Townsend (TAMU) def. Laura Slisane (UH) 6-1, 6-4
4. Renee McBryde (TAMU) def. Gabriela Giraldo (UH) 6-4, 6-3
5. Riley McQuaid (TAMU) def. Phonexay Chitdara (UH) 7-5, 6-2
6. Jessica Anzo (TAMU) def. Azul Pedemonti (UH) 6-2, 6-1
Doubles Competition
1. Mimi Kendall-Woseley / Phonexay Chitdara (UH) def. #39 Tatiana Makarova / Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) 7-5
2. Katya Townsend / Renee McBryde (TAMU) def. Laura Slisane / Gabriela Giraldo (UH) 6-2
3. Riley McQuaid / Jessica Anzo (TAMU) def. Azul Pedemonti / Sophie Gerits (UH) 6-1
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (6,2,3,4,1,5)
Texas A&M 7, Prairie View A&M 0
George P. Mitchell Tennis Center– Bryan-College Station, Texas
Singles Competition
1. Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) def. Victoria Fuenmayor Castillo (PVAMU) 6-0, 6-1
2. Dorthea Faa-Hviding (TAMU) def. Ruju Chauhan (PVAMU) 6-0, 6-1
3. Renee McBryde (TAMU) def. Mahogani Green (PVAMU) 6-0, 6-1
4. Jessica Anzo (TAMU) def. Jimena Duran-Castellanos (PVAMU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Isa DiLaura (TAMU) def. Jessica Lackey (PVAMU) 6-0, 6-0
6. Elise Robbins (TAMU) vs. Salma Sanchez Villalobos (PVAMU) 6-4, 6-4
Doubles Competition
1. #39 Tatiana Makarova / Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) def. Victoria Fuenmayor Castillo / Mahogani Green (PVAMU) 6-1
2. Katya Townsend / Renee McBryde (TAMU) def. Ruju Chauhan / Jessica Lackey (PVAMU) 6-0
3. Isa DiLaura / Elise Robbins (TAMU) def. Salma Sanchez Villalobos / Jimena Duran-Castellanos (PVAMU) 6-0
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (2,3,5,4,1,6)
POSTMATCH NOTES
TEAM NOTES
- Following the pair of victories, Texas A&M opens the season with a 2-0 record. The Maroon & White have started 2-0 every season since 2014-15.
- Texas A&M recorded a pair of 7-0 victories on Monday. The last time A&M defeated an opponent 7-0 was on March 1, 2020 against Prairie View A&M.
- The last time Texas A&M defeated back-to-back opponents by a score of 7-0 happened on Feb. 23 and Feb. 27, 2019, when the Aggies defeated Abilene Christian and SMU.
- A&M went undefeated in singles against both Houston and Prairie View A&M. The last match where the Aggies went undefeated in singles was on Marrch 1, 2020 against Prairie View A&M.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Renee McBryde went a perfect 4-0 on Monday against the Cougars and Lady Panthers, starting the season 5-1 in singles and an unblemished 5-0 in doubles play. She is 2-0 with Katya Townsend
- Katya Townsend played in three overall matches and came away with victories in all three. The Coconut Creek, Florida, native improves to 8-3 in singles and 5-4 in doubles.
- Jayci Goldsmith won three matches overall on Monday, improving to 4-1 in singles and 6-2 in doubles. As a duo with Tatiana Makarova, the No. 39 ranked duo improves to 6-1.
- Tatiana Makarova won her only singles match of the day in straight sets and added a victory in doubles alongside Jayci Goldsmith. The No. 39 ranked duo climbs to 6-1 this season.
- Isa DiLaura joined the Texas A&M women’s tennis program in January as a transfer from Texas Tech. Her overall singles record improves to 3-1, while also boasting a 2-1 overall doubles mark.
- Elise Robbins won her first dual matches as an Aggie on Monday, improving her singles record to 6-3 and doubles record to 7-3
- Mark Weaver won his 90th and 91st dual matches since joining the Texas A&M program as head coach in 2015-16. His overall record improves to 91-47
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics