Houston Valeriia Krokhotina returning the ball during an NCAA college tennis match on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Houston, Texas, | Gillian Wisniewski/The Cougar
The Houston Cougars battled against the UCF Knights on March 28 at the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility. Houston returned to their home courts after a dramatic victory against Iowa State. The Cougars were determined to continue their perseverance, but fell to the Knights 4-1.
Doubles Matches Recaps:
UCF Knights sophomore Olivia Bergler and freshman Lauren Seye came out swinging against Cougar juniors Iva Sepa and Valeriia Krokhotina. The Knights gained a quick 6-1 doubles victory.
Knights sophomores Jade Psonka and Vladislava Andreevskaya followed by only letting up two games to Cougars juniors Petja Drame and Elizaveta Morozova. The Knights ended the match with a 6-2 win.
Singles Matches Recaps:
Houston’s senior Sophie Schouten earned her 13th singles victory in the season against Seye on court, 6-3, 6-2, which allowed the Schouten to gain the first point for Houston.
Attention then turned to UCF, who defeated Cougar senior Chems Doha Zeghlouli with overpowering groundstrokes for the first set, 6-1. However, Zeghlouli was determined to make a comeback in the second. The Cougar made a close call and pushed for a set tiebreak, but fell short to UCF 6-4, 7-5.
UCF senior Jantje Tilbuerger closed out the lineup against Morozova. Tilbuerger entered the first set with a rush to close out the service games, winning 6-1. The Cougar responded with grit and power, extending long-shot rallies into the second for the Cougar win 6-1. Ultimately, the Knight came to close out the third, 6-1, 2-6, 6-1.
Final set summaries:
In the doubles round, UCF Bergler and Seye outmatched Sepa and Krokhotina 6-1. Thereafter, Psonka and Andreevskaya defeated Morozova and Drame 6-2. In effect, left Tilbuerger and freshman Marina Gatell against Schouten and Zeghlouli in an unfinished match.
In the singles round, Schouten proved superior against Seye 6-3, 6-2. Subsequently, Bergler won the match against Zeghlouli 6-4, 7-5. Tilbuerger gained an edge over Morozova, 6-1, 2-6, 6-1. Concluding the day’s matches for Sepa, Krokhotina and Drame.
With the loss, the Cougars are now 4-5 in conference heading towards the final five conference matches. Houston looks forward to bouncing back with a matchup against the Missouri State Bears on March 29 at the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility.
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