CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas tennis team will take its four-game winning streak to Texas this weekend as the Bears will open Southland Conference play with matchups against the Lamar Cardinals (6-2) on Friday and the Texas A&M – Corpus Christi Islanders (10-2) on Sunday.
 
The Bears (6-5) will look to continue their strong play in the SLC as they are a combined 24-9 since the 2016-17 season and are coming off a 9-2 2019 performance that turned into a first-ever SLC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance.
 
MEET THE LAMAR CARDINALS
 
The Lamar Cardinals reside in Beaumont, Texas and will carry a winning streak of their own into the matchup as the Cardinals have won six straight after starting the year 0-2. The 2 p.m. Friday afternoon match with the Bears at the Thompson Family Tennis Center will be match seven of eight of Lamar's homestand and they will finish it out with a Sunday afternoon battle with the Northwestern State Lady Demons.
 
The Cardinals will enter the match with a combined mark of 30-18 in singles play and 12-12 in doubles play. The team is headlined by seniors Jasmin Buchta, Bianca Vitale and Sanja Jolic as the three represent the No. 1-3 courts respectively and are a combined 13-10 on the year. Vitale and Buchta have been unphased over the last few weeks as Vitale is enjoying a six-game winning streak while Buchta has won her last three. Junior Natalia Garcia Molina and sophomore Laura Sola Grau will present stiff challenges at the No. 4 and 5 as Molina holds a 5-2 mark at the No. 4 while Sola Grau is 5-1 at the No. 5.
 
In doubles play, the Bears should look to attack the No. 1 and 3 court as the top pairing of Buchta and Jolic hold a modest 4-4 record while Sola Grau and freshman Jayci Wong are 1-5.
 
The Cardinals hold the head-to-head advantage over the Bears with a career 10-4 record and are 5-3 against them at home.   
 
MEET THE TEXAS A&M – CORPUS CHRISTI ISLANDERS
 
The Texas A&M – Corpus Christi Islanders reside in Corpus Christi, Texas and were on a five-game winning streak before falling to the UTSA Roadrunners on February 18. The Islanders will face the Bears at noon on Sunday after opening their SLC slate with the Lady Demons tomorrow afternoon.
 
The Islanders have mightily impressed through their first 12 games with a 55-8 showing in singles play and dominant 22-6 mark in doubles. Four of the eight singles players are on winning streaks of three or more, including two 9-game streaks from February 4 SLC Player of the Week junior Kei Kato and February 11 SLC Player of the Week sophomore Camille Townsend. Named 2019 SLC Newcomer of the Year, Kato has flourished at the No. 3 with a 7-0 mark while Townsend sits at 7-0 at the No. 2. Freshman Victoire Delattre has thrived at the No. 5 and 6 courts early on with marks of 5-1 and 4-0 for an impressive overall record of 9-1.
 
In doubles play, the Islanders will be a tough out from any court as their highest loss total comes at No. 1 with three. The top pairing of sophomores Mariya Shumeika and Townsend boast a 6-2 record while freshman Emma Honore and Kato are a perfect 6-0 record at the No. 3.
 
The Islanders have a strong grip on the head-to-head matchup with the Bears at 14-1 and 3-1 at home. The Bears will go for their second straight road victory over the Islanders as they won 4-1 last April for their first-ever head-to-head win.
 
KEEP UP WITH THE BEARS
 
There will not be live stats or video for either match. For updates, follow @UCATennis on Twitter.