HOUSTON – Louisiana Tech wrapped up its trip to Houston, falling to No. 59 Rice by a final score of 4-0 on a windy Sunday afternoon at the George R. Brown Tennis Center.
 
For a second straight day, doubles were competitive across all three courts between LA Tech (9-4) and Rice (8-4).  At No. 1, the duo of Ana Rodrigues and Zoie Epps were down 1-3 but rattled off three straight games to take a 4-3 lead over the 33rd-ranked tandem of Fernandez Martinez and Darya Schwartzman.  However, the Owls countered with three straight games of their own to win it, 6-4.
 
Meanwhile on the neighboring court, Maria Tsironi and Alice Brook went back and forth against Saara Orav and Francesca Maguina at No. 2.  The Bulldogs and Owls were tied at 2-2, 3-3, and 4-4 before Rice held serve and then broke LA Tech to also win, 6-4.
 
It was a battle at No. 3 as well where the duo of Nina Skoric and Mio Kozaki were up 6-5 against Divna Ratkovic and Allison Zipoli before the match was stopped.
 
Rice got off to a hot start in singles, claiming the first set on five of the six courts.  The lone first set that belonged to LA Tech was courtesy of June Vigneron.  The freshman, playing just her second dual match of the spring, took the first set 6-3 over Martinez. 
 
LA Tech fought back though in the second sets.  Rodrigues missed out on a set point, up 5-4 on a deuce point, while Epps fought off a match point to hold serve and get to 4-5. 
 
The Owls would ultimately get straight-set victories on courts two, three, and five.
 
UP NEXT
LA Tech will continue its four-match road swing in the state of Texas, facing Abilene Christian and Tarleton State on March 8 and 9, respectively. 
 
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