Aulia, Britez-Risso Headline Lady Vols’ Entries on ITA Preseason Rankings
August 27, 2025 | Women's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Six Lady Vols have earned preseason rankings from ITA, with three singles entries and three doubles pairings making the list.
Singles
Headlining the group is Catherine Aulia, the No. 19-ranked player in the preseason singles list. Aulia finished the 2025 dual season with a 9-9 record, playing all her matches on court two. She managed a 2-5 record against ranked opponents in the campaign, including a victory over then-No. 34 Annabelle Xu of Virginia in the NCAA Round of 16 match.
Leyla Britez-Risso enters the Fall slate as ITA's No. 34-ranked singles player following an exceptional Junior season, which saw her play to a 22-7 singles record, including a 16-4 record in dual matches. She finished the season on a tear, going a perfect 4-0 in singles and doubles in her NCAA tournament first and second-round matches.
Vanesa Suarez enters the list at No.121, her debut on ITA's singles rankings. In the 2025 dual season, she tallied an 11-7 record in singles and finished strong with a three-match winning streak to end the season.
Doubles
Aulia and Britez-Risso have been tabbed as ITA's No. 17-ranked pairing, following a 2025 dual season in which they went 16-4 as a tandem. The two became a feature at the court 2 doubles position, leading the way for a Lady Vols squad that won 21 of their 28 contested doubles points.
Suarez joins Maeve Thornton at the No. 36 spot on the list, after going 10-2 as a duo last season. The pair went 9-1 in their final 10 completed sets.
Elim Yan and Saray Yli-Piipari come in at No. 89 in the doubles rankings. Yli-Piipari has shown much improvement heading into her sophomore campaign, dominating ITA's summer events, and ultimately winning the singles and doubles titles (with Suarez) at the ITA National Summer Championships.
Lady Vols in the ITA Preseason Rankings (Rank among SEC Players)
Singles
No. 19 – Catherine Aulia (8)
No. 34 – Leyla Britez-Risso (18)
No. 121 – Vanesa Suarez (42)
Doubles
No. 17 – Catherine Aulia/Leyla Britez-Risso (7)
No. 36 – Maeve Thornton/Vanesa Suarez (11)
No. 89 – Elim Yan/Saray Yli-Piipari (27)
For all the latest information from Lady Vol Tennis, follow the team on Twitter/X @Vol_WTennis, Instagram @vol_wtennis or Facebook.
Singles
Headlining the group is Catherine Aulia, the No. 19-ranked player in the preseason singles list. Aulia finished the 2025 dual season with a 9-9 record, playing all her matches on court two. She managed a 2-5 record against ranked opponents in the campaign, including a victory over then-No. 34 Annabelle Xu of Virginia in the NCAA Round of 16 match.
Leyla Britez-Risso enters the Fall slate as ITA's No. 34-ranked singles player following an exceptional Junior season, which saw her play to a 22-7 singles record, including a 16-4 record in dual matches. She finished the season on a tear, going a perfect 4-0 in singles and doubles in her NCAA tournament first and second-round matches.
Vanesa Suarez enters the list at No.121, her debut on ITA's singles rankings. In the 2025 dual season, she tallied an 11-7 record in singles and finished strong with a three-match winning streak to end the season.
Doubles
Aulia and Britez-Risso have been tabbed as ITA's No. 17-ranked pairing, following a 2025 dual season in which they went 16-4 as a tandem. The two became a feature at the court 2 doubles position, leading the way for a Lady Vols squad that won 21 of their 28 contested doubles points.
Suarez joins Maeve Thornton at the No. 36 spot on the list, after going 10-2 as a duo last season. The pair went 9-1 in their final 10 completed sets.
Elim Yan and Saray Yli-Piipari come in at No. 89 in the doubles rankings. Yli-Piipari has shown much improvement heading into her sophomore campaign, dominating ITA's summer events, and ultimately winning the singles and doubles titles (with Suarez) at the ITA National Summer Championships.
Lady Vols in the ITA Preseason Rankings (Rank among SEC Players)
Singles
No. 19 – Catherine Aulia (8)
No. 34 – Leyla Britez-Risso (18)
No. 121 – Vanesa Suarez (42)
Doubles
No. 17 – Catherine Aulia/Leyla Britez-Risso (7)
No. 36 – Maeve Thornton/Vanesa Suarez (11)
No. 89 – Elim Yan/Saray Yli-Piipari (27)
For all the latest information from Lady Vol Tennis, follow the team on Twitter/X @Vol_WTennis, Instagram @vol_wtennis or Facebook.
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