No. 29 Houston tennis suffered back-to-back road losses to No. 12 Arizona State and Arizona this past weekend. The Cougars entered the March 7 and 8 matches with an 11-0 overall record and a 2-0 mark in Big 12 play.
Earlier in the week, Houston senior Chems Doha Zeghlouli was named Big 12 Player of the Week after a standout performance in Utah the previous weekend.
Sun Devils break Cougars’ win streak
On Friday, March 7, the Cougars traveled to the Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe, Ariz., where they suffered their first loss of the season.
Houston got off to a rocky start in doubles play as No. 89 seniors Sophie Schouten and Zeghlouli fell to Sara Svetac and Vivian Ovrootsky, 6-2, on court one. On court two, the Sun Devils secured the doubles point when Aiya Nupbay and Lily Taylor defeated juniors Iva Sepa and Valeriia Krokhotina 6-4.
Arizona State, which is 10-4, went on to win three completed singles matches on courts one, three and five.
Court one featured junior Elizaveta Morozova against Emilija Tverijonaite, where Tverijonaite claimed a 6-3, 6-0 victory. Ovrootsky extended Arizona State’s lead with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Sepa on court three. On court five, Nupbay defeated junior Petja Drame 6-4, 6-1 to clinch the match for the Sun Devils.
The loss marked Houston’s first defeat of the 2026 season.
Houston tries to regain composure against Arizona
The 11-2 Cougars closed the weekend in Tucson at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center, where they fell short against No. 73 Arizona on Sunday, March 8.
Arizona, now 10-7 on the season, came out strong in doubles play. Krokhotina and Sepa fell 6-1 to Josie Usereau and Maria Garcia on court two. Houston also dropped the match on court three as Drame and Morozova lost to Tanvi Narendran and Martyna Ostrzygalo 7-5.
Houston responded in the singles competition when Morozova earned Houston’s first point with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Ostrzygalo on court one. Krokhotina and Schouten later forced tiebreakers to keep the Cougars in contention.
Krokhotina defeated Narendran 6-4, 7-6 (4) on court four, while Schouten beat Zoya Chulak 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) on court six.
The match ultimately came down to a three-set battle on court three, where Ciara Moore outlasted Zeghlouli 6-3, 6 (4)-7, 6-3 to secure the win for Arizona.
Houston returns to the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility on Friday, March 13, to face No. 34 Texas Tech at 1 p.m. The Cougars will then host Colorado at 1 p.m. Sunday.
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