H-E-B Invitational
H-E-B Invitational | Waco, Texas
Sept. 29-Oct. 1
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SMU's Maja Makoric, Reka Patel, Caroline McGinley and Millie Skelton will be traveling to Waco to compete in the H-E-B Invitational beginning Friday, Sept. 29 at the Hurd Tennis Center.Â
"We are excited to be going to the H-E-B Invitational this weekend," said associate head coach Blair Shankle. "It will be a great tournament for Maja, Millie, Caroline, and Reka to play their first matches of the fall. They have prepared well and we're looking forward to watching them compete and make adjustments as the weekend progresses."
There are expected to be two rounds of doubles on both Friday and Saturday at 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., with a round of singles in-between at 10 a.m. On Sunday, one round of doubles is expected at 9 a.m., followed by another round of singles at 10 a.m.
This will be freshmen McGinley and Skelton's career debuts. Skelton, hailing to the Hilltop from Great Britain, had a junior ITF career-high of 271. She also boasted a 50% win rate in 2023 while playing for the Great Britain National Tennis Academy.
McGinley, a New Jersey native, was the No. 2 ranked player in all of her home state and was ranked top 50 in the nation of 2023 recruits. The former five star recruit posted a win rate greater than 60% in singles as well as a greater than 80% in doubles over the past year in USTA 18U. At the time of her signing, she was ranked 26 nationally in girls 18U singles and 8 in doubles.
Senior Makoric makes her first appearance on the court this season, coming off of a 13-6 fall tournament record from the 2022-23 season. Skilled in doubles play, Makoric is also coming off of advancing to Round of 16 in last season's ITA Regional Championship with then-partner Lana Mavor. She also earned a 6-3 victory in the NCAA 1st Round matchup against Baylor with then-partner Jackie Nylander.
Senior Patel will also be making her season debut appearance on the court this weekend, coming off of a 10-6 fall tournament record from 2022-23. She went undefeated in two tournaments last season, including the Red & Blue Challenge (3-0) and the TCU Hidden Dual (2-0).
The other announced schools participating in the H-E-B Invitational are Baylor, Texas, Missouri, Denver, Illinois, Nebraska and Tennessee.
Tournament updates can be found across SMU's women's tennis social media pages.Â
H-E-B Invitational TENTATIVE Schedule (as of 9/21):
FRIDAY
Doubles Session (9 AM - Doubles Matches):
            •     Baylor/SMU vs. Missouri (Hurd Grandstand 2,1,3,& 5)
            •     Illinois vs. Denver (Hurd RS 7-10)
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Nebraska (Hurd GS/RS 4,6,11, & 12)
Singles Session (10 AM - Singles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Illinois (Hurd RS)
            •     Baylor/SMU vs. Nebraska Hurd GS)
            •     Missouri vs. Denver (Hawkins)
Afternoon Session (not before 1:30 PM - Additional Doubles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Missouri (Hurd GS/RS 4,6,11, & 12)
            •     Baylor/SMU vs. Illinois (Hurd Grandstand 2,1,3,& 5)
            •     Nebraska vs. Denver (Hurd RS 7-10)
SATURDAY
Doubles Session (9 AM - Doubles Matches):
            •     Nebraska vs. Baylor/SMU
            •     Denver vs. Missouri
            •     Illinois vs. UT/Tennessee
Singles Session (10 AM - Singles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Baylor/SMU
            •     Illinois vs. Denver
            •     Nebraska vs. Missouri
Afternoon Session (not before 1:30 PM - Additional Doubles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Nebraska
            •     Baylor vs. Illinois
            •     Denver vs. Missouri
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SUNDAY
Doubles Session (9 AM - Doubles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Illinois
            •     Baylor/SMU vs. Denver
            •     Missouri vs. Nebraska
Singles Session (10 AM - Singles Matches):
            •     UT/Tennessee vs. Nebraska
            •     Baylor/SMU vs. Illinois
            •     Missouri vs. Denver
