HUNTSVILLE, Texas - The University of Central Arkansas tennis program dropped one as they fell to Sam Houston 5-2. 

The Bears couldn't find their rhythm from the get-go as they dropped six of their nine matches in the loss. 

Doubles:

UCA dug themselves into a hole early as they lost two of the first three matches of the day. The one shining light of the doubles portion was the team of sophomore Chunxi Xin and Fuka Nonoyama. The sophomore duo rallied after the team lost the doubles point and made sure it was not a sweep for Sam Houston. Xin and Nonoyama battled hard and eventually clinched it 6-4 to close out doubles play. 

Singles:

It was a tough day for the Bears in singles play as well, as they dropped the first couple to begin the second portion. However, that train stopped when junior Yada Vasupongchai hit the court. The junior dominated in two short sets, as she won her outing 6-4.

The Bears followed that victory with another as they continued to stay alive in the match. Nonoyama was one of two UCA players to play three sets in this match. Nonoyama was the first and only one to claim the victory as she bested her opponent 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.

Up next, the Bears will head to Nacogdoches, Texas, to take on Stephen F. Austin at 11 a.m. on Saturday. 

Quote from head coach Casey Wharton:
"Sam Houston is good, they are always really good, they like to control the tempo and they are really good at it. I think we got off to a slow start to doubles, we got a slow start to the tempo and energy, and was just playing from behind. I think we started singles and got better, but by then we were playing catchup. We absolutely fought back in singles. I was very proud of Fuka and Yada, we know we had chances in other matches as well. I think in the future, we will look to get out to a better start, energy wise and tempo wise. However, overall I do think we did a good job."