WTEN Preview \\ Texas, Wichita State

THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa women’s tennis team hosts its season opener this weekend at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex. The Hawkeyes will face No. 17 Texas at noon (CT) on Friday before taking on Wichita State at noon on Sunday.

FOLLOW LIVE
• A live stream of both duals will be available on hawkeyesports.com via PlaySight.
• Fans can follow the matches live via StatBroadcast and updates will be provided on the Iowa women’s tennis’ X account at @iowa_tennis.

THE OPPONENTS
• Texas finished the 2025 season ranked No. 17 in the ITA team rankings. The Longhorns are 0-1 this season having lost its season opener to Pepperdine, 5-2, on Jan. 18.
• Sophomore Carmen Herea advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Singles Championships during the fall season.
• Friday’s meeting is the third all-time between Iowa and Texas.
• Wichita State is currently 2-3 overall with wins over Texas State and SMU. The Shockers will face Iowa State on Saturday prior to Sunday’s dual.
• The Hawkeyes have won four of the last five meetings against Wichita State, including posting a 4-1 win over the Shockers last season.

LAST MATCH
Iowa went 1-1 at the ITA Kickoff Weekend, advancing to the regional final. Following weather-related schedule changes, the Hawkeyes defeated UC Santa Barbara, 4-1, on Jan. 24, before falling to No. 12 Ohio State, 4-0.
• Iowa’s win over the Gauchos was the first championship-side victory in the ITA Kickoff event.

QUICK HITTERS
• Iowa returns five letterwinners from a team that won 13 matches and finished tied for eighth in the Big Ten standings and earned an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament.
• The Hawkeyes’ NCAA Tournament appearance was the first in 15 years.
• Sasha Boros is in her 10th season as Iowa’s head coach. The Iowa alum has guided the Hawkeyes to 105 victories -- the second-most in program history behind Micki Schillig’s 112 wins. Boros has 282 wins as a head coach in stops at Stetson, Missouri and Iowa.

IN THE RANKINGS
• Sophomore Sally Xu and freshman Eline Bex were ranked 82nd in the ITA doubles rankings at the conclusion of the fall season
ALL EYES ON DAI
Senior Dianne Hayashida has been named a Big Ten Preseason Player to Watch for the 2026 season. The Peru native posted a 5-4 record in singles and doubles during the fall.
• Hayashida won a team-best 20 singles matches during the 2025 season, earning her second first-team All-Big Ten honor.
• Hayashida is 2-2 in dual action in singles and 3-2 in doubles, teaming with Mia Mack. She played at the No. 1 position in both singles and doubles.
MIA’S STRONG START
Germany native Mia Mack has gotten off to a strong start in a Hawkeye uniform, going 4-0 in singles at the two line and 3-2 in doubles through the first two weekends of the season.
• Mack opened her Hawkeye career by winning five of six matches during the opening weekend of the spring, going 3-0 in singles at the No. 2 spot and 2-1 in doubles at the No. 1 position. Two of her victories came over ranked wins.
• Teaming with Dianne Hayashida, the duo defeated the 14th-ranked Duke tandem. Mack later downed No. 98 Liv Hovde in straight sets to earn Iowa’s lone point against the Blue Devils.