Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
TENNIS
Louisiana Tech will close out the regular season with a five-match home stand, beginning today at 11 a.m. with a Conference USA matchup versus Kennesaw State.
Friday will mark the second ever meeting on the courts between LA Tech and Kennesaw State. The two programs first met back in 2016 with the Bulldogs winning 5-2 over the Owls in Kennesaw, Georgia.
LA Tech (12-8, 2-0) looks to rebound after a pair of hard-fought losses to Memphis and Tulane this past weekend, two opponents who have been ranked in the top 75 this season. The Bulldogs grabbed the doubles point in both matches but suffered defeats of 4-2 and 4-3 to the Tigers and Green Wave, respectively.
Zoie Epps provided points in singles in both matches, winning each in straight sets at the No. 2 position to extend her winning streak to seven. The sophomore is now 18-2 in dual singles and 30-4 on the season.
Mio Kozaki also provided a singles point for the Bulldogs, winning 6-2, 6-1 over Tulane at the No. 4 spot. It was her fourth victory of the spring and her first from that position. As a team, LA Tech is a combined 56-40 in dual singles.
The duos of Zoie Epps/Ana Rodrigues and Nina Skoric/Mio Kozaki defeated both Memphis and Tulane. Both tandems have won three straight while the Bulldogs are a combined 31-20 in dual doubles.
Kennesaw State (5-6, 1-1) has won four of its last six matches, including a 5-2 league victory over Sam Houston. Most recently, the Owls suffered a narrow 4-3 loss at Middle Tennessee.
In dual singles, KSU is a combined 30-33 with both Ema Baraniakova and Izabelle Persson owning 6-4 records. Baraniakova, who plays primarily at the No. 1 position, has won four of her last five from the top spot. Both won singles points in their conference matchup versus the Blue Raiders.
The Owls are a combined 18-11 in dual doubles, anchored by the duo of Baraniakova and Sofia Madrid who have a team-best 8-2 mark at the No. 1 spot. KSU has won the doubles point in eight of its 11 matches this spring.
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BOWLING
Louisiana Tech will take on No. 8 North Carolina A&T in the second round of the NCAA Rochester Regional. The Bulldogs and Aggies will square off today at 8 a.m. CT at Bowl-A-Roll live on BowlTV.
Louisiana Tech (83-45) is making a fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Regional. This season, the Bulldogs are making an appearance with a new look, with only two bowlers having made a significant impact last season.
Sophomore transfer Rachel Ong has had a tremendous start to March, earning two All-Tournament honors and being named CUSA All-Academic. The lefthander started the month with a third-place finish at the Bulldog Classic with a 1,030, one of just five bowlers in the plus. Ong continues to be one of the best in the country at filling frames, ranking in the top 15 in fill and spare percentage.
Jenna Stretch has also been a key contributor for the Bulldogs over the past couple of tournaments. The junior ranks 41st in the player composite performance index, which considers all statistics. Stretch averages 199.4 on the season with an 85.7 fill percentage.
Another player ranked inside the top 50 in the PCPI is Kylee Trexler. The sophomore averages over 200 on the season in the leadoff position. Trexler qualified for her second consecutive United States Bowling Congress Intercollegiate Singles Championship after qualifying fourth at the sectional with a 1,335 for six games.
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TRACK AND FIELD
Louisiana Tech will have the first true test of the season when the Bulldogs travel to Gainesville, Florida, for the Pepsi Florida Relays at the James G. Pressly Stadium, Percy Beard Track today and Saturday.
The field consists of Akron, Alabama State, Auburn, Baylor, Charleston, Southern, Charlotte, Columbia, East Carolina, Florida, Florida A&M, Florida State, Georgetown, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Georgia Tech, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Iowa, Jacksonville, Liberty, Louisiana Tech, Maryland, McNeese State, Miami, Minnesota, Mississippi State, North Carolina A&T, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, South Carolina, South Florida, Texas A&M, UAB, UCF, and Vanderbilt.
Louisiana Tech is coming off a strong showing at the Clyde Hart Classic. The Bulldogs had 22 podium finishes, including a new program record.
Donald Lamp broke the seven-year-old record in the hammer at 60.01m. The junior college transfer bested his previous mark by over five meters. Lamp had an incredible indoor season that saw him play inside the top 10 on the LA Tech performance list in the weight throw.
Other transfers making a mark were Kaitlyn Washington (48.92m, discus), Kimeone McLeod (13.62, 100mH), Mekhi Gammons (47.39, 400m), and Nikoby Johnson (10.31, 100m).
Zachary Drake and DeMarko Lawler are freshmen who saw their first action outdoors for the Bulldogs. Drake threw 63.75m in the javelin, and Lawler leaped 7.14 m in the long jump.
Jamara Patterson, Osaretin Joy Usenbor, Jenaia Williams and Nia Wiley teamed up to win the 4×400 for the women, while Gammons, Tim Rummelhagen, Laeden Tucker and Cullen Hronek took second on the men’s side.
Each athlete earned a spot on the select list of athletes to participate at the prestigious Pepsi Florida Relays.
