No. 10 LSU Set for Three-Match Homestand Over Kentucky, No. 7 Tennessee, and Southern
BATON ROUGE, La. – No. 10 LSU Women’s Tennis continues SEC play, hosting Kentucky on Friday, Feb. 28 at 5:00 p.m. CT. Afterward, the program hosts No. 7 Tennessee at 11 a.m. CT and a non-conference matchup over Southern at 4:00 p.m. CT on Sunday, Mar. 2, at the LSU Tennis Complex.
Attendance at all LSU matches at the LSU Tennis Complex is free. Attendees will be required to comply with the university’s clear-bag policy.
In their last outing, LSU defeated Ole Miss 5-2, led by standout performances from freshman Kayla Cross, Tilwith Di Girolami, and senior Anita Sahdiieva, who all secured wins in both singles and doubles. The result marked LSU’s first win over Ole Miss since 2023 and its first SEC opener victory since 2021.
The Bayou Bengals hold a 31-11 overall mark in singles, and 19-2 in doubles, highlighted by five ranked singles wins, and six ranked doubles victories. LSU has secured the doubles point in nine of its ten matches this season.
Freshman Cadence Brace won the SEC Freshman of the Week on Feb. 12 after earning three victories over ranked opponents at the ITA National Indoor Championship. Brace battled with Michigan’s ace Julia Fleigner despite going unfinished, 4-6, 6-0. The freshman earned wins over UCLA’s Kimmi Hance, 6-0, 6-2, and her first-ranked victory in Oklahoma State’s Anastasiya Komar in singles play, 6-3, 6-2. Brace is 2-2 in singles on a two-match winning streak this season.
Teaming up with freshman Cross at the top doubles spot, the duo holds a perfect 4-0 record, with each victory against a ranked opponent. Their most recent win was a dominant 6-0 sweep over Ole Miss’ No. 89 duo Anaelle Leclercq and Ludmila Kareisova. The pair’s performances earned the freshmen a No. 17 doubles ranking by the ITA.
Cross holds the highest ITA singles ranking on the team at No. 51 and earned the season’s first SEC Freshman of the Week honors. The Canadian standout boasts a 3-1 mark on the No. 2 spot in singles play. She also secured her first single victory in the top spot against Ole Miss. Cross currently holds a four-match winning streak in singles play.
Freshman Di Girolami, ranked No. 72, leads the team with a 7-2 singles record, including a 5-2 mark on Court 3. She also picked up key wins at the No. 1 spot against UL-Lafayette and court No. 2 against Ole Miss. The Belgian standout added a ranked victory to her resume at the ITA Indoor Championship, defeating Oklahoma State’s Gracie Epps, 6-0, 6-2.
Di Girolami has succeeded alongside senior Sahdiieva on the No. 2 doubles courts, where the duo holds a No. 22 ranking. The pair boasts a team-best 7-1 record, highlighted by ranked victories over UCLA’s Kate Fakih and Olivia Center, 6-2, and Oklahoma State’s Gracie Epps and Marcela Lopez, 6-4. Sahdiieva has also been a force in singles play, owning the second-best record on the team at 6-1. Her latest win came in LSU’s 5-2 victory over Ole Miss, where she defeated Lucie Petruzelova 6-2, 7-6(4).
Rounding out doubles play, senior Gaby Rivera and sophomore Kenna Erickson have a 5-1 record at the No. 3 doubles spot, along with an additional win on the No. 2 court against Tulane. The 5-1 record marks the team’s second-best doubles margin. Rivera holds a 4-3 record in singles play. Meanwhile, with her latest win, Erickson remains undefeated at 4-0, clinching the dual match victory over Ole Miss with a 6-2, 6-4 win against Andrea Nova.
Sophomore Kinaa Graham leads the way in ranked singles wins with a 2-1 record, highlighted by taking down Marcela Lopez of Oklahoma State, 6-3, 6-0. Furthermore, the sophomore posted the clinching singles point over Ahmani Guichard, 2-6, 7-5, 7-5, in LSU’s 4-2 victory over UCLA. Graham holds a 3-2 overall record on the season.
LSU leads the all-time series against Kentucky with a 25-22 record, has won 19 games against Tennessee, and remains undefeated against Southern with a 30-0 record.
Kentucky holds a 6-2 record this season, falling to No. 7 Tennessee in its SEC opener. No. 59 sophomore Julia Zhu leads the Wildcats with a 7-1 singles mark, while junior Zoe Hammond follows at 6-2. Seniors Ellie Eades and Elizabeth Stevens hold a 4-0 record in doubles. Head coach Shelly Jaudon is in her second season with the program.
No. 7 Tennessee has a 7-1 overall record, led by junior No. 69 Leyla Britez Risso, who has an 8-0 mark in singles play, followed by senior No. 5 Elza Tomase at 6-1. In doubles, juniors Catherine Aulia and Britez Risso have a 4-0 mark, followed by No. 56 Tomase and freshman Elim Yan. Head Coach Alison Ojeda leads the Volunteers in her ninth season.
Southern has a 0-3 record on the season. Their last match was a narrow defeat to Southeastern, 3-4. The Jaguars are led by Head Coach Jeffrey Conyers, who is in his 19th season.
For more information on the LSU women’s tennis program, follow the Tigers on X @lsuwten, Instagram @LSUWTen, and Facebook.com/lsuwten.