University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
#71 Ole Miss
Women’s Tennis Central: #7 Tennessee at #71 Ole Miss, #10 LSU
February 26, 2025 | Women's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 7 Tennessee women's tennis team will hit the road for the first time in conference play to face No. 71 Ole Miss and No. 10 LSU. The Lady Vols will play the Rebels at 4 p.m. on Friday, before traveling to take on the Tigers at noon on Sunday.
The Lady Vols are off to a strong start with a 7-1 overall record and a 1-0 mark in SEC play, their best start to a season since 2020, which they began 9-1.
Last time out, Tennessee posted its first conference victory of the season, edging No. 67 Kentucky, 4-2. The Lady Vols earned their fourth consecutive win against the Wildcats, a streak dates to April 10, 2022, when the Big Orange notched a 4-0 win in Knoxville.
Catherine Aulia, Leyla Britez Risso and Vanesa Suarez each produced a perfect slate against Kentucky. No. 36 Aulia tacked on a 6-1, 6-2 victory against Lizzy Stevens, while No. 69 Britez Risso carded a 6-1, 6-4 triumph against Ellie Eades. In doubles, the pair of Aulia and Britez knocked off Zoe Hammond and Tess Bucher in a 6-1 affair. The duo earned their fourth consecutive win of the season, remaining flawless thus far.
No. 110 Vanesa Suarez provided the clinch against Kentucky with a convincing 6-3, 6-2 decision against Tess Bucher. In doubles, Suarez and her partner Maeve Thornton notched a 6-2 victory against Julia Zhu and Asuncion Jadue.
The Big Orange have knocked off four ranked opponents thus far, defeating No. 15 Texas Tech, No. 15 Pepperdine, No.4 Stanford and No. 67 Kentucky.
MILESTONE TRACKER: Junior Vanesa Suarez secured her 35th career singles win at Kentucky. She tallied a 6-3, 6-2 victory versus Tess Bucher.
Head Coach Alison Ojeda is approaching 200 career wins. She currently owns 195 triumphs, with 150 of them coming at Tennessee. Ojeda will join two previous Tennessee head coaches, Mike Patrick and Sonia Hanhn-Patrick, who have hit the 200 mark in their careers.
A PEEK AT THE CHARTS: The Intercollegiate Tennis Association announced on Feb. 25 that the squad is No. 7 in the fifth poll of 2025. The No. 7 ranking is the highest the Lady Vols have achieved in the Alison Ojeda era. The following members of the team were ranked in the second spring ITA individual poll posted on Feb. 20, 2025:
Singles
No. 5 Elza Tomase
No. 36 Catherine Aulia
No. 69 Leyla Britez Risso
No. 110 Vanesa Suarez
Doubles
No. 43 Elza Tomase & Catherine Aulia
No. 56 Elza Tomase & Elim Yan
OLE MISS:
Doubles
No. 88 Ludmille Kareisova and Anaelle Leclercq-Ficher
LSU:
Singles
No. 51 Kayla Cross
No. 72 Tilwith Di Girolami
No. 121 Gaby Rivera
Doubles
No. 17 Cadence Brace & Kayla Evans
No. 22 Tilwith Di Girolami & Anita Sahdiieva
SCOUTING THE REBELS: The Lady Vols lead the all-time series, 32-21, against Ole Miss. Eleven of Tennessee's 32 wins are in Oxford. The last time the two teams met was last season in Knoxville, when the Lady Vols shut out the Rebels in a 4-0 victory on March 15, 2024. The Big Orange have produced a five-match winning streak against Ole Miss, dating to 2021. The Rebels own a 7-3 overall record and 0-1 conference record thus far in the season.
Live stats and the live stream can be found here for the Ole Miss match.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS: Tennessee owns the edge in the all-time series, 34-19, against the Tigers of LSU. Thirteen of the Lady Vols' wins are in Baton Rouge. The two teams most recently met last season in Knoxville, when Tennessee swept LSU, 4-0, on March 5, 2024. The Big Orange has a five-match winning streak against LSU, dating to 2021. The Tigers carry a 9-1 overall record and have compiled a 1-0 record in conference play.
Live stats for the LSU match can be found here and the live stream can be found here.
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Players Mentioned
