Rice tennis starts strong

The Rice men’s and women’s tennis teams entered their 2016 seasons with high expectations, and their efforts in the first month have done little to temper their goals. They have a combined 9-2 record and have swept the Conference USA Tennis Athletes of the Week twice in the first three weeks (Alison Ho and Katherine Ip for the women; Jamie Malik and Tommie Bennett for the men). Nearly 500 fans energized the George R. Brown Tennis Center Jan. 31 to take in a unique simultaneous dual match with Louisiana State University. The women are currently ranked No. 31 in the nation and will host No. 38 Texas Feb. 13 at 11 a.m. The men have moved up from No. 58 to No. 50 and will host a Valentine’s Day doubleheader Feb. 14 with Louisiana-Lafayette at 10 a.m. and Incarnate Word at 4 p.m.

Photos courtesy Jeff Fitlow/Rice University
Video courtesy Brandon Martin/Rice University