HOUSTON – The Northwestern State tennis team came out with a much different attitude Saturday in the second day of the Rice Invitational, and the results showed.
 
Three Lady Demons won their singles matches while the freshmen doubles team of Nico Tagami and Zala Vnuk got back on the right track at the George R. Brown Tennis Center.
 
"Overall, there was more confidence on our side in today's matches," fourth-year head coach Marcos Morelli said. "We look forward to continuing to work on things (Sunday)."
 
Tagami and Vnuk took down the Sam Houston duo of Anamaria Kurtsikashvili and Maria Gajete, 6-3, scoring their first victory of the weekend and the first for a Northwestern doubles pair at the event.
 
Northwestern's other doubles pair of sophomores Martina Acebedo Bonocore and Athina Grigoriadou retired down 4-1 in their match against Louisiana Tech's Lucie Gallegos and Natalia Trigosso.
 
Vnuk also bounced back in singles play, taking a straight-set win against Louisiana Tech's Carolina Correia, 6-4, 6-4, in the consolation bracket of Flight 7.
 
The victory means Vnuk will face Tulane's Diana Badalayan in the consolation finals Sunday.
 
Bonocore also reached the consolation finals, outlasting Sam Houston's Sara Sadadinovic in a three-setter in Flight 3. After dropping the first set 6-4, Bonocore cruised in the final two sets, 6-2, 6-2, to advance.
 
She will face Louisiana Tech's Gallegos on Sunday in the consolation finals.
 
In Flight 8, which is a round-robin draw, Tagami fell to Tulane's Delanie Tribby, 7-5, 6-4.
 
The tournament concludes Sunday with singles play in each of the eight flights. Play begins at 9 a.m.