BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University women's tennis team kicks off the 2019 spring schedule Friday when they travel to Houston, Texas for two matches over a three-day span. The Cardinals will open the year with non-conference matches against Rice (Friday) and Houston (Sunday). It will be the first matches for the Red and White since they ended the fall portion of their schedule at the end of October.
 
Entering his 19^th year as head coach, David Wong returns a young squad but with plenty of experience. The Cardinals were a freshman-laded team last season and lost only one senior. This year's team will still be fairly young – one senior – as they return the heart of their roster from the 2018 campaign.
 
The Cardinals enter the new season looking to improve from a 5-15 (.250) season a year ago that saw the Red and White post a 3-8 (.273) record in Southland matches. As the season wore on the Cardinals' youth turned to experience as the Big Red improved down the stretch splitting their final four matches.
 
The Cardinals will look to junior Jasmin Buchta and Sanja Jolic to lead the squad. The two veterans split time between the Nos. 1 and 2 singles positions combining to win 20 matches in 2018.
 
Rice will have a one-week head start on the Cardinals having opened their spring schedule a week ago at the Orlando Invitational. A non-team scored event, the Owls squared off against players from Kansas, Texas Tech and North Carolina State during their trip to Florida. The Owls enter the new season looking to build from a 15-9 campaign a season ago.
 
The match against Rice will begin Friday at 2 p.m. from the George Brown Tennis Center in Houston. That is a change in date from the original schedule. The Cardinals were originally slated to open the season Saturday but moved the match up due to the threat of rain in Houston Saturday.
 
The Cardinals will then make the short trip over to the University of Houston Sunday for a 2 p.m. match against the Cougars. The Cougars, who will have one match under their belt before facing LU, are looking for the same magic that led to a 20-4 record a season ago. Sunday's match will be played at the Barbara Wallace Winston Tennis Facility.