Houston tennis player, Petja Drame, is waiting to receive a serve during her doubles match against BYU on Saturday, February 28, 2026, in Houston, Texas. | Seles Sanchez/The Cougar
The Houston Cougars continued their desert run in Tucson, Arizona and faced the Arizona Wildcats at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center on March 8. The Wildcats, in a closely contested match, overtook the win against the Cougars. The Cougars sit at 2-2 in conference play for the 2026 season.
Doubles Matches Recaps:
The matches started with the Cougars and Wildcats showing extreme tenacity. Arizona Wildcats junior Josie Usereau and sophomore Maria Garcia outplayed the Cougars juniors, Iva Sepa and Valeriia Krokhotina, from the start with their serves and hitting winners with their forehands. The Wildcats gained their first double win, 6-1.
The remaining matches tied 5-5, turned into a tense battle for the final point. The Cougars’ juniors, Elizaveta Morozova and Petja Drame lost the tiebreak, allowing the Wildcats to gain the set 7-5.
Arizona had taken the lead by winning the doubles round against the Cougars.
Singles Match Recaps:
A new face in the Cougars singles lineup, freshman Alexia Lavinia Puiac, kept the match tight 2-2 from the opening. The Wildcats overwhelmed the court and took the first set 6-3. Puiac could not make shots in the second set, and the Wildcats won 6-3, 6-1.
Following the first Wildcat singles point, Arizona’s Garcia did not let Drame gain confidence and won 6-1, 6-0.
With the head score being 3-0, Houston Cougar Morozova dominated from the beginning and pulled the plug on the match, 6-2, 6-4. Putting the Cougars on the board 3-1.
She was followed by Cougar Krokhotina, who led the first set till the end, taking it 6-4. With an absolute one-handed backhand destroyer, Krokhotina put the second point for Houston after an intense match to a tie break, 6-4, 6(7)-6(4).
Houston senior Sophie Schouten clinched the third point for the Cougars after a gritty performance and held her composure in back-to-back tiebreaks for the match 7(7)-6(5), 7(7)-6(4).
The score stood at 3-3, putting all the pressure on the final match, Houston Cougar Zeghlouli against Arizona Wildcat Freshman Ciara Moore. The Wildcat controlled the match from the beginning and won the first set 6-3. Although Zeghlouli had conquered through the second set, forcing a tiebreak win 7(7)-6(4). At the end, Wildcat Moore was able to clean cut the match for an Arizona win, 6-3, 7(7)-6(4), 6-3.
Although it was a loss for the Cougars, they remain determined for their next match at home. They look forward to facing the Texas Tech Red Raiders at the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility on March 13 at 1 p.m.
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