Houston junior Petja Drame scoring during the second round of singles of an NCAA tennis match against Texas Tech, on Friday, March 13, 2026, in Houston, Texas. | Luis Diego Gonzalez/The Cougar
The Houston Cougars journeyed to Ames, Iowa on March 22 for a match-up against the Iowa State Cyclones at the Cyclone Tennis Complex.
The Cougars arrived with a loss on the road against the Kansas Jayhawks, but mounted an impressive comeback against the Cyclones for the win with a total score of 4-3.
Doubles match recaps
Cougars seniors Chems Doha Zeghlouli and Sophie Schouten opened the day with the first doubles victory against Cyclones sophomore Mari Paz Alberto Vilar and junior Ashlee Narker, winning 6-4.
A loss followed the Cougars victory, with Cyclones sophomore Julia Camblor and junior Stanislava Shulzhenko matching the tone by winning in a 6-4 victory against Cougars juniors Iva Sepa and Valeriia Krokhotina.
The Cyclones then had back-to-back wins with freshmen Alicia Dale and Gabriella Kellner taking the final doubles point home against Cougars juniors Petja Drame and Elizaveta Morozova, 6-4.
The Iowa Cyclones concluded the Doubles round and led the total score 1-0.
Singles match recaps
In the singles round, the Cyclones were faced with Houston’s pure determination to win.
Schouten led the race and took their set early with a score of 3-0 at the start. Schouten had a massive amount of tricks up her sleeve and did not let the Cyclones gain any confidence. She then went on to win the first set 6-2.
In the second set, the Houston Cougars played the ball from the baseline and moved the opposing Cyclone side to side. Schouten shut out the match 6-2, 6-3 for the win.
Drame followed after Schouten, but was on the latter end of the score during their first set. However, they pushed through to the end in the first set, 6-4. Along with their impressive strength in their serves, Drame ended up flying through the second set for the match, 6-4, 6-1.
However, Narker set the mark on the court against Zeghlouli. Narker had the lead from the start, barely letting Zeghlouli gain any ground. Zeghlouli played impressively, but Narker battled through their tricks and won the first set 6-3.
From the beginning of the second, it seemed that Narker had the match completely and overpowered Zeghlouli. While the Cougars were able to gain three games from Narker, Zeghlouli was ultimately thrown into a whirlwind for the Cyclone win, 6-3, 6-4.
Sepa took charge of their match with dominance from the baseline in the first set, 6-1. However, Shulzhenko competed with intensity and gained the second set for Iowa State, 6-2. After split sets, the third was filled with explosiveness from both ends of the court.
Ultimately, the Iowa State Cyclone was able to come out on the better end for the victory with the scores being 1-6, 6-2, 6-4.
The rollercoaster of a day reached a new peak with Krokhotina against Camblor. Camblor owned the first set undisputedly, 6-0. Not having won a game in the first set, the Cougars were fueled with fire for the comeback.
With gained momentum and line lickers, Krokhotina did not want to lose the tiebreak. Krokhotina unbothered in the tiebreak won 7(7)-6(1), and with the incredible shift in momentum Krokhotina’s topspin was able to win the match, 0-6, 7(7)-6(1), 6-2.
Houston’s last chance
Similar to the last conference play, the Cougars kept their eyes on the final deciding match for the win. The match was set, and it was Morozova who took the Cougars towards victory.
Morozova played a game of tug of war against Vilar for the first set. A battle from the baseline, rallies were long and fierce and the match seemed like a never-ending tie-break for the first set.
Neither Cougars nor Cyclone showed signs of slowing down. However, Vilar ended up breaking ahead and won two consecutive points for the win, 7(11)-6(9).
Onto the second set, Iowa State thought to continue the lead and add a win for the Cyclones, but the Cougars were right behind, not letting high balls interfere. Morozova gained the second set, 6-4, and forced the deciding match into a final set.
The last set was led by Morozova because of Vilar’s consistent errors. These errors proved fatal for Vilar, and Morozova won the deciding final match for the Cougars ending the sets with the scores 7(11)-6(9),6-4, 6-3.
What’s next?
With another drama-filled victory in the books, the Cougars look forward to their matchup against the UCF Knights under the Houston skies on March 28, heading back home to the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Center.
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