Oxford, Miss. – The LSU women’s tennis team (9-3, 1-1 SEC) hits the road in SEC play for the first time this season with a weekend in Mississippi. The Tigers will face the Ole Miss Rebels (7-2, 1-0 SEC) at 3 p.m. CT on Friday, March 8 at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center before ending the weekend with a match against the Mississippi State Bulldogs (9-4, 0-1 SEC) at noon CT on Sunday, March 10 at the AJ Pitts Tennis Centre.
No. 42 Ole Miss (Mar. 8)
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Mississippi State (Mar. 10)
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Notes on Ole Miss
In the series history between the Rebels and the Tigers, Ole Miss holds a 31-19 lead. When the teams met last season at the LSU Tennis Complex, the Tigers claimed a 5-2 win.
The Rebels are 7-2 on the season, 1-0 in SEC play and are ranked No. 42 in the latest ITA Team Rankings. Last time out, Ole Miss opened SEC play with a 4-0 sweep over Mississippi State and then a 7-0 win over Eastern Illinois hours later on Saturday, March 2.
Briana Crowley has led the way for the Rebels, posting a 7-1 record at the No. 3 singles court and boasting three doubles wins at the No. 1 spot. She and doubles partner Ava Hrastar represent the Rebels in the individual rankings with a No. 79 spot in the ITA doubles rankings.
Notes on Mississippi State
LSU holds a 34-13 lead in the series history between the programs and has won the past three straight contests. When the teams met last season at the LSU Tennis Complex, the Tigers earned a 6-1 win.
The Bulldogs are 9-4 on the season, 0-1 in SEC play entering the weekend. The Bulldogs have defended their home courts well, posting a strong 8-1 record playing at the AJ Pitts Tennis Centre. They were last in action on March 2, where they fell by a score of 4-0 at No. 42 Ole Miss on March 2.
Veteran senior Alexandra Mikhailuk boasts a 9-1 singles record playing at the No. 1-3 singles courts and enters the weekend on a two-match winning streak at the No. 2 spot. Freshman Janya Clemens has also enjoyed a strong start to the season in singles with a 6-1 record at the No. 5 and 6 courts.
Last Time Out
LSU went 2-1 over the home weekend at the LSU Tennis Complex, dropping Friday’s SEC opener against No. 19 Florida by a score of 4-0.
The Tigers bounced back on Sunday as they handily took down No. 14 South Carolina by a score of 4-1. The Tigers secured the doubles point thanks to a win from Aran Teixidó Garcia and Florentine Dekkers at the No. 2 court before Maya Tahan and Gaby Rivera earned a 7-5 win at the No. 3 spot to clinch it. In singles, straight set wins from Rivera and Anita Sahdiieva set up Kenna Erickson to clinch the match with a 6-3, 7-5 win at the No. 6 spot. The win was the first Top 25 win for the program since the 2021 season, and the first for second-year head coach Taylor Fogleman.
Two hours later, LSU returned to the court for a match against UL-Monroe and put in a good display to get a 4-0 win over the in-state foes. LSU swept doubles as Erickson and Sahdiieva, Dekkers and Teixidó Garcia and Maya Tahan and Emma Grant each picked up wins on their courts, with Grant’s being her first collegiate doubles win and her first win in a dual match. Singles saw Teixidó Garcia and Erickson win in straight sets with Sahdiieva clinching the match on the No. 3 court with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Angela Del Campo.
Tiger Tidbits
LSU rose up 29 places in the latest ITA team rankings, moving from No. 63 to No. 34 after going 2-1 over the weekend.
Doubles play has been a strength for the Tigers in dual matches as they’ve won the doubles point in nine out of 12 matches. LSU has won the doubles point in every team win thus far this season and has a 22-9 record across the three doubles court. Florentine Dekkers and Aran Teixidó Garcia have led the win in doubles success, posting a 10-2 record at the No. 2 court.
Anita Sahdiieva boasts a perfect 8-0 singles record at the No. 3 and 4 singles courts and is tied for the most singles wins on the team. The Ukraine native’s singles success has been crucial for the Tigers, with LSU winning all eight matches that she’s scored a singles point in.
In addition to her success in doubles alongside Dekkers, Teixidó Garcia has been a key to success for the Tigers with her singles record of 8-1 playing at the No. 1-3 singles courts. Seven out of her eight wins have come in straight sets, with the other coming due to an injury retirement.
Graduate student Maya Tahan boasts a 6-2 record in singles at the No. 5 court. The graduate transfer from Israel has won all six singles matches in straight sets and is 6-3 in doubles this spring playing with a team-high three different partners.
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