KINGSVILLE, Texas – The No. 45 Texas A&M-Kingsville women's tennis team is preparing to make its first-ever foray into NCAA Tournament play and the Javs first task in the South Central Region to try and get past ninth-ranked and top-seeded Angelo State on Monday with the two squads scheduled to square off at 8:30 a.m. at the Arlington Tennis Center in Arlington, Texas.
This match will mark the second time in the last three postseasons the Javelinas and Rambelles have crossed paths. In the first round of the 2018 Lone Star Conference Tournament, the Javelinas earned a come-from-behind, 5-4 victory over ASU in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The teams that take the court in Arlington will look very different from the ones that met in Corpus Christi, as junior Laura Montalvo (Cochabamba, Bolivia) is the only holdover from that 2018 match still on the TAMUK roster. The Rambelles have also taken the last two meetings with the Javelinas, including a 6-1 triumph in 2021.
The lone Javelina point in that matchup was delivered by freshman Milou ter Morsche (Goor, Netherlands), who pulled out a 7-5, 7-6 (7-5) triumph in the fifth flight. That win was part of a season-closing run by ter Morsche in which she captured eight of her last nine matches, including six-in-a-row to end the regular season. She also enters the postseason having not lost a set in her last four matchups. This win streak, along with her overall 10-6 record, earned ter Morsche an All-LSC Honorable Mention singles nod.
Three of ter Morsche's teammates joined her on the all-LSC roster, with Montalvo, sophomore Maya Donkor (McLean, Va.) and freshman Alessa Maier (Hechingen, Germany) also receiving honorable mention recognition for their singles play and Montalvo and Donkor landing on the All-LSC Honorable Mention doubles list.
Both Donkor and Maier enter the regional tournament playing some of their best tennis of the season and their play helped the Javs close out the regular year with five victories in their last six matches. Maier, who has settled into the No. 3 spot in TAMUK's lineup has won five of her last six with each of those victories coming in straight sets. Despite being given the difficult task of playing in the No. 1 spot, Donkor has responded with seven triumphs in 2021, including four in her last five matches.
Fans can check Javelinaathletics.com for results and a recap of Monday's match following the final point.
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