Razorbacks match up with Sooners

FAYETTEVILLE - After two tough battles the past two weeks, the Arkansas women's tennis team has their final road nonconference match on Sunday, facing No. 41 Oklahoma in Norman, Okla. The No. 37 Razorbacks are 4-3, and are looking to snap a two game skid against the 3-2 Sooners.

Arkansas fell last Sunday in a second straight tight road match, falling 4-3 at Oklahoma State. The Razorbacks won the doubles point for the sixth time in seven matches, and got singles wins from Claudine Paulson and Ana Lorena Belmar Hernandez, who are tied for the team lead with a 6-1 singles record. 

"It was a really good college tennis match," Arkansas head coach Michael Hegarty explained. "We were very happy with our doubles play again. We had a good doubles point, took the lead in the match, but in singles we just came up a little short. The momentum shifted back in their favor, and on the road, little things cost you the victory. There were still many good things to look at for us in the match."

Arkansas' heavily freshman roster is off to a fast start. With seven new freshmen, the class is a combined 19-11 in singles and 22-13 in doubles. In addition, the three new freshmen that joined after the fall season are 6-4 in singles and 11-3 in doubles.

Oklahoma is 3-2, with wins over Wichita State, Hawai'i, and Minnesota. Arkansas is 15-12 in the all-time series with the Sooners. Arkansas has won three of the past four matches since 2010, including a 4-2 victory in the first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament.

"This is a really good match every year," Hegarty said. "It's an annual match for us. We've had some great matches with them recently. We know them well and they know us well. It's going to be a really good, highly contested match. It's definitely a really good road opportunity to get a big win."

Play begins Sunday at 12 p.m. (CST). Full recaps and results will be available online following play.  Fans can also keep up with Arkansas women's tennis through the team's  @RazorbackWTEN Twitter and Facebook pages.