Women’s Tennis Central: NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – For the fourth time in program history and second consecutive year, the 10th-ranked Tennessee women's tennis team is set to compete in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Women's Tennis Team Championship. The Lady Volunteers will go head-to-head against second-seeded Texas A&M on Thursday at Baylor University, hosted at Hurd Tennis Center, with the first serve set for 5 p.m. ET.

The No. 10-seeded Lady Vols (20-7, 10-5) have shut out their first three foes in the NCAA Tournament, a first in program history. Last weekend, in the Round of 16, UT swept seventh-seeded Virginia, 4-0, in Charlottesville, Va. It was the first time Tennessee defeated Virginia since Feb. 8, 2009, 5-2, in Knoxville.

In the first and second rounds, the squad posted two consecutive sweeps against Elon and No. 26 Pepperdine. Tennessee now owns 25 shutouts in postseason play, including eight in the Alison Ojeda era.

In her ninth season as head coach, Ojeda has guided the Lady Vols to two consecutive NCAA Quarterfinals, a first for the program. Overall, Tennessee owns 44 NCAA tournament wins, with 13 coming in the Ojeda era. The victory over Virginia clinched the fourth time in the Ojeda era the team has posted 20 or more wins, marking the 14th occurrence in program history. The Lady Vols have now produced three straight seasons of at least 20 victories, which marks the first three-year streak since the 2001, 2002 and 2003 seasons.

Tennessee owns 15 victories over ranked opponents, recording wins against No. 15 Ohio State, No. 15 Pepperdine, No.4 Stanford, No. 67 Kentucky, No. 71 Ole Miss, No. 25 South Carolina, No. 70 Arkansas, No. 12 Oklahoma, No. 25 Alabama, No. 64 Mississippi State, No. 15 Texas, No. 34 Florida, No. 71 Missouri, No. 26 Pepperdine and No. 7 Virginia. Six of those results are against top-25 foes, including six over top-15 teams.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES

Texas A&M (28-3, 14-1 SEC) enters the quarterfinals coming off a phenomenal regular season and reaching the SEC tournament championship. The Aggies hosted the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament, defeating Quinnipiac and UC Santa Barbara to advance to the Sweet 16. The Aggies knocked off No. 17 UCLA in the Round of 16, 4-2, to advance to the Elite Eight.

Texas A&M possesses a 15-8 series edge over the Lady Vols. The two teams met earlier this spring on March 30, when the Lady Vols suffered a 4-0 loss in Knoxville. This is the second straight year the sides will meet in the NCAA tournament, as the Aggies recorded a 4-1 victory over the Lady Vols in the 2024 semifinals in Stillwater, Okla., and went on to win the national title. The last time Tennessee fended off Texas A&M was on March 8, 2019, with a 4-2 result in Knoxville.

QUARTERFINAL HISTORY

Tennessee has garnered four total NCAA Elite Eight appearances in school history, with the other appearances coming in 2024, 2010 and 2002. This year marks the second quarterfinal appearance for the Lady Vols in the Alison Ojeda era. The Aggies and the Lady Vols have only squared off one other time in the postseason, coming into this weekend's match. The two teams met last season in the semifinals, when UT suffered a 4-1 loss on May 18, 2024.

A PEEK AT THE CHARTS: The Intercollegiate Tennis Association announced on April 22 that the squad is No. 10 in the twelfth poll of 2025. The following members of the team were ranked in the sixth spring ITA individual poll posted on April 22, 2025:

Singles

No. 7 Elza Tomase

No. 41 Catherine Aulia

No. 66 Leyla Britez Risso

Doubles

No. 30 Catherine Aulia & Leyla Britez Risso

No. 35 Elza Tomase & Maeve Thornton

No. 57 Elza Tomase & Elim Yan

No. 72 Elza Tomase & Catherine Aulia

No. 74 Elza Tomase & Saray Yli-Piipari

Texas A&M

Singles