BATON ROUGE — The LSU women’s tennis team returns home after last week’s two-game road trip to host both the Houston Cougars and the 19th-ranked Texas A&M Aggies this weekend at the W.T. “Dub” Robinson Tennis Stadium.
“This is a very big weekend for us,” said LSU head coach Tony Minnis. “This is big, not only on the national level, but also in the region. Over the past 10 seasons, we’ve averaged a second-place finish in the region, and this is a huge weekend for our team. We need to have a good showing against both Houston and Texas A&M.”
On Saturday, the LSU women’s tennis team will open a four-game homestand against Houston at noon. The Lady Tigers head into the non-conference battle with an overall record of 6-1, while Houston comes to Baton Rouge with a 4-1 record. LSU leads the all-time series by a count of 9-2. The Lady Tigers dropped Houston in last season’s contest, 6-1.
LSU will be led into this weekend’s contests by 87th-ranked Tami Botts. The senior No. 2 singles player owns an impressive 15-3 overall record this season and is currently in the midst of a 10-match winning streak. Botts has not been defeated in singles play since Nov. 11, when she fell in a three-set battle to Tennessee’s Crystal Cleveland at the Southeastern Conference Fall Tournament.
“Tami’s been playing some awesome tennis lately,” Minnis said. “She’s playing a more attacking style this season, and with her strength it’s hard for her to be beat. This weekend will not be easy for any of our players, and Tami will need to step up and get some more wins for us against some tough competition.”
The Lady Tigers will then host No. 19 Texas A&M on Sunday at 1 p.m. in what is one of LSU’s biggest rivalries in women’s tennis.
Texas A&M leads the all-time series, 12-11, and earned a close-fought 5-2 victory last season at home in College Station, Texas. In the most recent matchup between LSU and Texas A&M held at the W.T. “Dub” Robinson Tennis Stadium, the Lady Tigers rallied to win the contest, 5-4.
The LSU women’s tennis team will host Houston at noon on Saturday and No. 19 Texas A&M at 1 p.m. on Sunday.