Who | No. 6 Utah Tech (7-12, 0-0 WAC) vs. No. 3 UT Arlington (7-9, 0-0 WAC)
When | Thursday, April 17 - 10 AM (MT) 
Where | Arlington Tennis Center - Arlington, Texas
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X)

Utah Tech begins the WAC Tennis Championships by facing No. 3 UT Arlington in the first round on Thursday morning. The winner of the matchup will challenge No. 2 Tarleton State in the semifinal round on Friday.

A GLANCE AT UT ARLINGTON
The tournament-hosting Mavericks come into Thursday's first round after ending their regular season with a 4-2 loss at WAC foe Tarleton State last Thursday. UTA holds wins over Cowley (4-1), Dallas Baptist (4-1), Cameron (7-0), Oral Roberts (4-0), Central Arkansas (4-1), Tarleton State (4-2) and Prairie View A&M (4-0) this season. 

The Mavs hold a 2-0 advantage all-time against the Trailblazers. Last season, UTA won a 6-1 decision in Arlington. 

Senior Ana Paula Jimenez leads the Mavericks with a 7-1 mark in singles play, all at the number one spot. In doubles play, Paula Jimenez and senior Ioana Dumitrescu are 7-5 at number two doubles to lead UTA. 

LAST TIME OUT
Utah Tech women's tennis won its fourth straight match and wrapped up its regular season by sweeping UT Dallas 7-0 on Tuesday afternoon at the UTD Tennis Complex. It was the Trailblazers' fifth 7-0 sweep of the season.

UT started off strong, securing the doubles point with wins in all three matches. Freshman Maya Inouye and sophomore Mariana Zurita won a tiebreaker 8-6 over senior Megan Zeng and sophomore Reika Nagai in the first match. 

Sophomores Ana Gutierrez Sampere and Olivia Bustos dispatched senior Jhastine Red Ballado and sophomore Elsha Valluru 6-1 in the second doubles match.

UTD withdrew from the third doubles match, giving freshman Nutsa Tsintsadze and senior Laura Coulome a win by default. 

In singles play, Inouye made Division I history for the Trailblazers with a hard-fought 6-3, 6-4 win at No. 5 singles against Red Ballado. With her 10th singles win, Inouye broke the Utah Tech single-season record for wins in the Trailblazers' brief DI era. The freshman is the first Trailblazer to win 10 singles matches since Yolena Carlon in 2018. 

Zurita toppled Nagai 6-2, 6-1 for a victory at the No. 1 spot.

At No. 2 singles, Bustos came out on top with a 6-0, 6-4 result over Zeng. 

Tsintsadze cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 4 singles, besting sophomore Kendall Curley. 

At No. 3 singles, Gutierrez Sampere dispatched Valluru 6-0, 6-1. 

UTD withdrew from the No. 6 spot, giving Coulome a win by default.

INOUYE'S HISTORIC FRESHMAN SEASON
Freshman Maya Inouye's 10 singles wins this season have set a Utah Tech Division I-era record for single-season wins. Inouye is the first Trailblazer to reach 10 wins since Yolena Carlon went 10-7 in 2018. 

BROOMS AT THE READY
Five of Utah Tech's wins this season have been 7-0 sweeps. The Trailblazers earned their first win of the dual season with a thrashing of Colorado Mesa at Trailblazer Tennis Courts in St. George on March 7. UT picked up a dominant 7-0 victory over the College of Idaho in Boise, Idaho, on March 9. In a doubleheader, the Trailblazers won 14 straight points in two sweeps of Mesa Community College on March 30. Utah Tech dispatched UT Dallas with a 7-0 sweep to conclude the regular season on April 15.

UT AT THE WAC TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS 
Utah Tech is seeking its first WAC Tennis Championships win in its second all-time appearance.

UT made its first-ever WAC Tournament appearance last season. No. 1-seeded and No. 62-ranked Grand Canyon eliminated the No. 8-seeded Trailblazers 4-0. Sophomore Ana Gutierrez and former Trailblazer Ya-Chi Hsu led 4-2 in the second doubles match before it went unfinished. 

In singles play, three matches went unfinished with sophomore Olivia Bustos trailing 6-4, 1-0 at the No. 6 spot. Sophomore Mariana Zurita had won three games, trailing 6-3, 2-0, when her contest at No. 3 singles went unfinished. 

FINALLY ELIGIBLE FOR POSTSEASON PLAY
Not only is the 2025 season Utah Tech's fifth Division I season overall, it is also the FIRST season that the Trailblazers are eligible for NCAA postseason play. 

The NCAA Division I Board of Directors officially approved Utah Tech's move to active Division I status back on June 28, 2024. With that confirmation, Trailblazer Athletics is now officially eligible to participate in all NCAA postseason championships in its 15 intercollegiate programs.

MEET THE TRAILBLAZERS
The 2024-25 roster consists of eight student-athletes with one senior, two juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen. Five Trailblazers are international students and three hail from the United States. Senior Laura Coulome (Eastern Arizona) and junior Nicole Kells (Alcorn State) both started their collegiate careers at other schools.

Head coach Eric Pelton is in his 19th season at the helm of Utah Tech women's tennis. Pelton has totaled 111 wins at UT and winning seasons in 2014 (12-9), 2017 (9-8), 2019 (13-4) and 2020 (6-3).

2024 IN REVIEW
The Trailblazers wrapped up their fourth and final season of transition to Division I in 2024 with a 6-16 (0-7 WAC) record, defeating UT Dallas, Colorado Mesa, Ottawa University (Ariz.), and Arizona Christian, along with a pair of wins over Mesa Community College.

UP NEXT
The winner of Thursday's first-round contest will advance to the semifinals of the WAC Tennis Championships and take on No. 2 Tarleton State tomorrow at 10 a.m. (MT).