Mark Weaver & Co. prepare to host SEC showdown vs. top-ranked Georgia

Texas A&M head women's tennis coach Mark Weaver joined us in studio on Thursday's edition of TexAgs Live to preview the No. 2 Ags' upcoming home matches against No. 21 South Carolina and No. 1 Georgia this weekend at the Mitchell Tennis Center.

Key notes from Mark Weaver interview

• Everything is good. It has been a busy spring, and it has gone by very fast. We've been on the road for four of the last five weeks. We’ve hardly been home in Aggieland. We’re looking forward to playing in front of the 12th Man on Friday and Sunday.
   
• We had a bit more of a target on our back and felt a bit more pressure this year. A few weeks back, we had a tough time with Vanderbilt on the road. A lot of things didn’t go our way in the preparation for the match. In a weird way, I think it took the pressure off ourselves. Life goes on after you take a loss. It kind of reset us and helped us breathe a little bit. Let's focus on good tennis and not focus on winning and losing so much. Let’s focus on doing the right things to play the best tennis we can play.
   
• We lost a tough one in the SEC Tournament in the final during the indoor season. We actually had a couple of tough losses to Georgia last season. One of them was on the road in the deciding match. We were up 5-1 in the last set and lost that one. That kind of reset us in a way. We lost a tough match in a strong home environment indoors. Georgia had a raucous crowd and took us out of our game. It was such an awful feeling, but we came back and realized life goes on. Put your head down and get back to work. When you go through those hard times, it kind of sets you in on what matters.
   
• We still have almost everyone back. Carson Branstine graduated and turned pro. We've got the best player in college tennis as far as I'm concerned in Mary Stoiana. We have Nicole Khirin, who is also one of the best players in college tennis. She's a junior and has been through a lot of matches. She clinched a lot of our matches at the NCAA Tournament last year.
   
• The majority of our lineup knows how to get over the finish line. Mia Kupres is a junior who has had an excellent career. Lucciana Perez was a freshman last year. She's played some big games for us. She's on a big winning streak, 13 matches. Daria Smetannikov has played a lot of matches for us.
   
• We have a lone freshman, Lexington Reed, from Florida. She's usually the first one off the court for us, in a good way. We've got most of everyone back.
   
• When you see Stoiana on the court, she is the ultimate athlete. She is very agile and moves very well. She kind of plays a different game than everyone. She comes to the net a lot more than most. Behind the scenes, I've never seen someone who wants to grasp anything she can to be the best tennis player she can be. She finds a way to get better. She watches tennis on TV all the time. She meets with the coaching staff to tweak the forehand or the backhand. She’s always working on the middle game, health or nutrition. She does a lot of things on her own. Her consistency over four years is remarkable.
   
• She's looking for every little thing she can do to be the best player she can be. She is not only motivated to do great things for A&M, but she is motivated for the next stage of her career. Unfortunately, her career in Aggieland is coming to an end. She is going to have a very successful pro career.
   
• Khirin is one of the biggest ball strikers I've ever seen. She can hit a winner from any position on the court. She knocks the cover off the ball. She can win on one stroke. Stoiana stretches the point a bit more. When she's on, she can play in Wimbledon.
   
• Kupres has had a tremendous improvement in her doubles play. She played a lot of pro events this summer and has a couple of top wins. She has really improved tremendously in her doubles. It's helped that Smetannikov has come along. It's maybe taken her a bit longer to get there in the doubles. This year, she has really shined. The way they complement each other, Kupres’ leadership has helped Smetannikov evolve into a good doubles player.
   
• It's been a wild season with indoor tennis. Our team has been good indoors because of the game styles that a lot of our current players have. We weren't far away from winning the national title earlier this season. It changes a lot outdoors as it gets hotter. So many other factors come into play, and points get a little bit longer. We have as good of conditioning as anyone in the nation. We work as hard as anyone in the nation. As it gets more and more into a battle, we'll take that. The outdoor season enables us to play our best tennis.
   
• I hate to say distractions, but there's going to be a lot going on this weekend. South Carolina is a feisty team, very energetic. No team plays with more energy than they do. We have to focus on the Friday match.
   
• I'm not getting too caught up in the Sunday match. No. 1 vs. No. 2 doesn't happen very often anywhere. It’s about as exciting as it gets. We also have Senior Day, a lot of emotions coming into play. Stoiana is the most decorated player in A&M women's history, with so many great memories. Jeanette Mireles from right down the road, her career is coming to an end. She's dealt with some injuries.
   
• I get a little emotional on Senior Day. We've been through a lot over the last four years. I'll be a little sad. Usually, the last match of the season brings out that side of me. The glory years at A&M's tennis they were a part of.
   
• Georgia’s No. 1 player, Sarah Hamner, is the top player in college tennis and is very young in her career. When the No. 1 player is one of the best players in the nation, that helps a team. She and Stoiana have had a lot of history. Stoiana has gotten the best of her recently. They are aggressive in doubles, with a lot of poaching at the net. They play with a lot of energy.
   
• Georgia is very similar to last year. They have everyone back and a new player in at six. They started out on fire. They have been able to maintain that all season. They had one loss indoors, but they are confident.
   
• We play Friday at 5 p.m. CT against South Carolina and Georgia on Sunday at 12 p.m. CT. We'll get to the SEC Tournament early. We have a double-bye starting on Friday. We'll get there Tuesday to get a practice in and get acclimated. We'll have to come out ready to go. We will play a top 10, top 15 team in the first match. We have to be ready to go.