The No. 14 Texas A&M men's tennis team faces Texas Tech at the SMU Tennis Complex at 5 p.m. (CT) on Friday.
The Aggies suffered their first loss of the season with a hard-fought 4-3 setback at the hands of four-time NCAA Champion No. 16 Virginia in second-round action of the ITA Kickoff Weekend on Sunday afternoon at the Mitchell Tennis Center. Tallying the points for the Aggies were junior Valentin Vacherot, sophomore Barnaby Smith and freshman Austin Abbrat. Vacherot picked up an impressive straight set win over Brandon Nakashima on court one. Smith, ranked No. 50 nationally, earned a 6-0, 1-6, 6-3 result over No. 38 Gianni Ross. Austin Abbrat defeated Aswin Lizen on court five to help the Spring, Texas native earn SEC Freshman of the Week honors.
A season ago, the Aggies and Red Raiders faced off in an exciting last match standing showdown at the Downtown Club at the Met in Houston. The Maroon & White were playing without their top two singles players and faced a deficit following the doubles result. Despite the adversity, the Aggies prevailed as a triumphant Kevin Lam pulled out a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 win on court six to win the last match standing and send A&M into the win column.
The Aggies road trip continues through the weekend as Texas A&M travels to South Bend, Ind. to take on No. 13 Notre Dame Sunday at 11 a.m. (CT).
