Freshman Aglae Van Den Bergh considered the readiness of her fourth-seeded Rainbow Wahine tennis teammates for today's match with fifth-seeded New Mexico State in the opening round of the WAC tournament.

“;We're kind of tired from our road trips, from the time difference, but we'll be fine,”; the freshman from Leuven, Belgium, said. “;Just get some sleep.”;

“;Not tired,”; corrected Sophie Kobuch, the longest-tenured Wahine player. The junior from Tournefeuille, France, has been the rock for a young UH team that saw key member Natasha Zorec go out for the year with a torn ACL early in the season.

Four freshmen—Van Den Bergh, Ellen Linsenbolz, Anja-Vanessa Peter, and Alyssa Nafarrete—were counted on to contribute right away, and answered the call. They had a huge role in UH's 12-12 dual-match record against tough competition.

“;It's a bright future for the kids, bright future for UH women's tennis,”; coach Jun Hernandez said. “;I'm looking forward to it, and they're working hard. All the kids are coachable, good people to be around with. So I'm just excited about what's going on with our program.”;

The Wahine have already doubled their six-win totals of the two previous seasons.

“;We had some very good matches, we came close a few times (in others), but overall it's a good season and now we're going to have to step it up here in the WAC and do everything to win it,”; Kobuch said.

UH, which just swept NMSU 7-0 in WAC play, opens play at 3 p.m. at UH.