BATON ROUGE, La. – Senior Gaby Rivera sealed the victory with a 6-1, 7-6(2) result on Court No. 6, propelling No. 10 LSU to a 4-2 win over Kentucky on Friday evening at the LSU Tennis Complex in Baton Rouge, La.
LSU improves to 10-1 and 2-0 in SEC play. Meanwhile, Kentucky drops to 6-4 and 0-2 in the conference.
“Today was a hard-fought win, and the girls deserved the result,” said Head Coach Taylor Fogleman. “It is always great to get a win in conference play. However, there are areas of improvement to strengthen before our next match. I thought Kentucky performed very well today. Head Coach Shelly Jaudon has done a great job leading this program; their team tested us today. The ladies will rest and return to work tomorrow before hosting a doubleheader on Sunday, which includes a top team in the country, No. 7 Tennessee.
The No. 22 duo of Anita Sahdiieva and Tilwith Di Girolami opened doubles play on the top spot over Elizabeth Stevens and Ellie Eades. The LSU duo jumped to a quick 4-0 lead before Kentucky got on the board at 4-1. Sahdiieva and Di Girolami responded with back-to-back games to seal the win at 6-1. On the season, the pair improved to 8-1 overall and 2-0 on the top doubles court.
On Court No. 2, Kenna Erickson and Gaby Rivera battled against Julia Zhu and Asuncion Jadue in a back-and-forth matchup. The Tiger pair grabbed an early 1-0 lead before Kentucky pulled ahead at 2-1. Erickson and Rivera responded to tie it at 2-2, but the Wildcats regained the advantage at 3-2. The Tigers found their rhythm from there, taking the last four matches to win 6-3, awarding LSU the doubles point.
No. 72 Di Girolami kicked off singles play against her doubles foe and Kentucky’s singles ace, Stevens, on the No. 2 spot. The freshman started well, racing to a 3-0 lead before Stevens took a game. The Tiger extended her advantage, but Stevens cut the deficit to 4-2. However, the Belgian native took the final two games, closing out the first set with a 6-2 win. Di Girolami shifted the momentum in her favor after a 1-1 start in the second set, stringing together three consecutive games for a 4-1 advantage. Stevens managed to trim the lead to 4-2, but Di Girolami sealed the straight-set victory at 6-2 to bolster her singles record to 8-2 on the campaign. The result gave LSU a 2-0 match lead.
Cadence Brace faced off against Zoe Hammond on the top court. Brace built a 3-0 lead in the first set before Hammond made it 3-1. The freshman took the final three of four games to close the opening set with a 6-2 win. In the second set, Brace left no doubt on the match, shutting the door with a 6-0 sweep to secure the win and giving LSU a 3-0 match lead. The Canadian native now holds a three-match singles winning streak on the season.
Erickson fought hard against Tess Bucher on the fifth spot but came up short in straight sets. After an early 3-1 lead in the first set, Erickson saw Bucher rally to even the score at 4-4 before dropping the set 6-4. In the second, Bucher took control early, and despite Erickson closing the gap to 3-2, the Wildcat pulled away for a 6-2 win, giving Kentucky a point on the board.
Sahdiieva was up next in singles and took on No. 59 Zhu on the No. 3 court. After a back-and-forth start in the first set, Sahdiieva held a 3-2 lead before Zhu took control, winning four straight games to take the set 6-3. In the second, Sahdiieva briefly leveled the score at 1-1, but Zhu pulled away, closing the match with a 6-2 victory, making the match score 3-2 in favor of LSU.
With all eyes on the sixth court, No. 121 Rivera battled with Ellie Myers. After dropping the opening game, Rivera delivered a great performance, winning six straight games to take the first set 6-1. The second set was a battle, with Rivera trailing 1-3 before rallying to tie it at 3-3. The senior jumped ahead 4-3, but Myers kept it close, forcing a 6-6 tiebreak. Rivera dominated the seven-point tie-breaker at 7-2 to clinch the set victory and seal LSU’s 4-2 win.
For more information on the LSU women’s tennis program, follow the Tigers on X @lsuwten, Instagram @LSUWTen, and Facebook.com/lsuwten.
LSU vs. Kentucky
Feb. 28, 2025
LSU Tennis Complex
No. 10 LSU 4, Kentucky 2
Singles
1. Cadence Brace (LSU) def. Zoe Hammond (UK) 6-2, 6-0
2. #72 Tilwith Di Girolami (LSU) def. Lizzy Stevens (UK) 6-2, 6-2
3. Anita Sahdiieva (LSU) fell to Julia Zhu (UK) 3-6, 2-6
4. Kinaa Graham (LSU) vs. Ellie Eades (UK) 6-1, 5-7, 3-0, DNF
5. Kenna Erickson (LSU) fell to Tess Bucher (UK) 4-6, 2-6
6. #121 Gaby Rivera (LSU) def. Ellie Myers (UK) 6-1, 7-6(2)
Doubles
1. #22 Anita Sahdiieva/Tilwith Di Girolami (LSU) def. Lizzy Stevens/Ellie Eades (UK) 6-1
2. Kenna Erickson/Gaby Rivera (LSU) def. Julia Zhu/Asuncion Jadue (UK) 6-3
3. Cadence Brace/Kinaa Graham (LSU) vs. Zoe Hammond/Tess Bucher (UK) 3-5, DNF
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (2,1,5,3,6)