PULLMAN, Wash. (Oct. 16, 2026) – The Washington State Women's Tennis team opens its 2026 spring season Sunday, Jan. 18, when it travels eight miles east to face the University of Idaho. The match begins at 11 a.m. and will be played at the Kibbie Dome.
 
SCOUTING IDAHO: The Vandals open their season by hosting Washington State for the first time since the 2000 season. Idaho returns six players from last year's team that went 15-6 and reached the semifinals of the Big Sky Championships. The Cougars hold a 37-18 advantage over Idaho, including victories in the last 27 matches.
 
COUGARS PICKED THIRD IN WCC PRESEASON POLL: WSU was picked third in the 2026 West Coast Conference Women's Tennis preseason poll, voted on by the conferences' 10 head coaches. Defending champion Pepperdine garnered the top spot in the preseason poll, receiving eight of the 10 first-place votes, to finish ahead of San Diego, which garnered the other two first-place votes. Washington State was third, followed by Loyola Marymount and Gonzaga to round out the top five. Cougar seniors Eva Alvarez Sande and Maxine Murphy were both named to the 2026 WCC Preseason Team, accounting for two of the six members. 
 
NEXT UP: Following this weekend's match, the Cougars head east to Athens, Ga. to compete in the ITA Kickoff Weekend. In WSU's four-team pod, hosted by Georgia, the Cougars will open against San Diego State on Sat., Jan. 24 and then face either Georgia or Maryland on Sunday, Jan. 25. The winner of the pod advances to the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in February.
 
COUGARS TO PLAY IN WEST COAST CONFERENCE: For the 2025-26 seasons, the Cougars will be an affiliate member of the West Coast Conference. When conference realignment impacted the Pac-12 Conference following the 2023-24 season, Cougar Tennis was one of 10 WSU athletic programs to become WCC affiliate members. This season marks the second of two seasons in the WCC before the Pac-12 resumes full-membership status beginning with the 2026-27 season.
 
COUGARS SIGN JOLYNN GARRETT: In early January, Washington State University Tennis announced a new team member, signing 10-year-old JoLynn Garrett through Team IMPACT. JoLynn, who is navigating life with Williams syndrome, officially signed with the team. She will participate in many activities with Washington State Tennis, including games, practices, and other team events, over the next two years.
 
ROSTER BREAKDOWN: For the 2025-26 season, the Cougar roster consists of seniors Maxine Murphy and Eva Alvarez Sande, juniors Yura Nakagawa and Zali Morris, sophomores Chisato Kanemaki, Martina Puvill and Haley Conway, and freshman Ava-Monet Sycamore.
 
HEAD COACH JOSH GRAETZ: Josh Graetz became the program's ninth head coach in the summer of 2025 after spending the previous two seasons as the Cougars' assistant coach. Graetz played a key role in WSU's run to the 2025 National Invitational Tournament title. Prior to WSU, Graetz served as the head coach for both men's and women's programs at Metropolitan State University in Denver, his alma mater.
 
FOLLOW LIVE: For all Cougar home tennis matches at Hollingbery Fieldhouse, live video streams of each match can be found HERE while live scoring is available HERE.
 
FOLLOW THE COUGARS: Keep up with Washington State tennis by following @WSUCougarTennis on Twitter, @wsucougartennis on Instagram, and Washington State Cougar Tennis on Facebook.