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MIDLAND, Texas (Tennis) – No. 43 Texas A&M University-Kingsville (3-7) ended day one at the Bush Tennis Center with a 9-0 victory over the University of the Southwest (1-1) Friday. The match followed Kingsville's near come from behind win versus No. 9 regionally-ranked Western New Mexico (3-6) that ultimately went to the Lady Mustangs, 5-4.
 
Mariaxi Herrera, Marija Dimitrovska, Erika Larrea, and Madi Gomez finished the day 2-0 in singles matches with victories over the Lady Mustangs and Southwest.
 
Match One
The Lady Mustangs went into singles action with a 3-0 lead following doubles wins, but the Javelinas stormed back to nearly upend WNMU. Cruising to singles victories, Herrera took singles No. 1, 6-2, 6-1, Dimitrovska earned a 6-1, 6-1 win in flight No. 2, Larrea defeated Annely Heinze in No. 5, 6-3, 6-4, and Gomez won singles No. 6, 6-1, 6-3. However, the comeback fell just short in a 5-4 setback to the future Lone Star Conference member.
 
Match Two
TAMUK came out strong in the 6 p.m. match with a dominating performance against Southwest. Teaming up for the first time this season, Herrera and Larrea stood tall in doubles No. 1 with an 8-1 win, Nadia Grlj and Paula Saenz took doubles No. 2, 8-1, and Gomez and Dimitrovska defeated Daisy Sanches and Eliseth Villa, 8-3, in doubles No. 3.
 
The energy carried over to singles play as Herrera trumped Hernandez 6-0, 6-1 in the top singles flight. Dimitrovska took the No. 2 singles match 6-0, 6-1 over Hatfield. No. 3 was won by Grlj, who defeated Kriger 6-2, 6-1 and Saenz, Larrea and Gomez also did the same with a 6-4, 6-0 win in No. 4 (Saenz), 6-0, 6-0 in No. 5 (Larrea) and 6-0, 6-2 victory in No. 6 (Gomez).
 
The Javelinas resume action at the Bush Tennis Center courts tomorrow at 9 a.m. against No. 13 North Central Texas College (5-6). The Lions are No. 6 in the NJCAA ITA Junior College Region II rankings. Amanda Alvarez sits in 23^rd nationally in singles and Allie Rike is 47^th. Kristin Hillestad and Rike are No. 14 in doubles nationally. In Region II, Alvarez is 12^th and Rike is 21^st in singles and Hillestad and Rike are No. 7 in doubles.
 
Last season, the then unbeaten and 13^th-ranked Lions fell to the Javelinas, 6-1, as Herrera and Dimitrovska picked up a victory in doubles No. 1, 8-3 and Tabata Lua and Grlj took doubles No. 3, 8-3. In singles play, Herrera downed Georgina Gosen, 6-2, 6-0, in flight No. 1, Grlj came out victorious in No. 2, 6-1, 6-1, Dimitrovksa added a 6-0, 6-1 win in No. 3 and Lua picked up a 6-3, 6-0 win in No. 6.
 
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