No. 13 LSU Advances to Second Round of NCAA Regional; Sweeps Stephen F. Austin, 4-0

BATON ROUGE, La. – No. 13 LSU Women’s Tennis opened NCAA Regional play with a 4-0 first-round sweep over Stephen F. Austin on Friday evening at the LSU Tennis Complex.

LSU moves to 22-7 overall, while Stephen F. Austin concludes their season at 17-7. The Tigers have eclipsed 22 wins for the first time since the 1980 season. LSU has now achieved more than 22 overall wins for the fourth time in program history, last accomplished in three consecutive seasons from 1978-1980.

“I want to congratulate Stephen F. Austin on a great season“, said Head Coach Taylor Fogleman. “It was incredibly nice to play the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament at home, and we had a great and supportive crowd. We’re going to need them in full force tomorrow against a well-coached and excellent Southern California team. I believe we can kick it up another gear or two, and we will certainly need to do so tomorrow. But I’m excited that the girls are getting this initial part of this competition at home; it should be a great day with some great tennis tomorrow, so we’re really looking forward to the opportunity.”

Tilwith Di Girolami and Kenna Erickson opened the dual match against Felicia Back and Sonja Rooth. Di Girolami and Erickson left no doubt on the third court as they swept the Lumberjack pair 6-0.

In a position to clinch the doubles point, Anita Sahdiieva and Kinaa Graham challenged Ksenia Mamontova and Avery Kinsey on the second court. The LSU pair took the first game before Mamontova and Kinsey knotted the set at 1-1. Sahdiieva and Graham would jump to a 3-1 lead and take the final three of four games to close out a 6-2 set win to give LSU a 1-0 match lead.

After obtaining the lead, No. 49 Kayla Cross began singles play for the Tigers against Mamontova on the second court. The LSU freshman jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, only dropping one game en route to a 6-1 first-set win. Cross held early leads at 1-0 and 2-1 in a competitive second set before she trailed Mamontova 3-2. The freshman would tie the set but fall behind again at 4-3. Looking composed, the Canadian native secured the final three games to win the set at 6-4 to give LSU a 2-0 lead.

Sahdiieva was next for the Tigers as the senior faced off with Rooth on the No. 4 court. Both players traded games until Sahdiieva edged ahead with a 3-2 advantage and broke away to later seal a 6-3 first-set win. Sahdiieva opened the second set by trailing Rooth 2-1, in which the Ukranian native captured five straight games to earn a 6-2 set victory to extend LSU’s advantage to 3-0.

Di Girolami looked to carry over her strong doubles performance as she faced Jemma Cave on the third court. The players traded games until the opening set was knotted at 2-2. Afterward, Di Girolami caught fire and earned a 6-2 set victory. The freshman stayed composed in the next set as she took a quick 3-0 advantage. Cave would steal a game, but the Belgian native took the final three of four games to post a 6-2 set win to clinch the match victory for LSU.

The Tigers resume play in the second round of the NCAA Regional against No. 18 Southern California on Saturday, May 3, at 2:00 p.m. CT at the LSU Tennis Complex.

For more information on the LSU Women’s Tennis program, follow the Tigers on X @lsuwten, Instagram @LSUWTen, and Facebook.com/lsuwten.

LSU vs. Stephen F. Austin
May 2, 2025
LSU Tennis Center
No. 13 LSU 4, Stephen F. Austin 0

Singles
1. #11 Cadence Brace (LSU) vs. Felicia Back (SFA) 6-1, 2-3, DNF
2. #49 Kayla Cross (LSU) def. Ksenia Mamontova (SFA) 6-1, 6-4
3. Tilwith Di Girolami (LSU) def. Jemma Cave (SFA) 6-2, 6-2
4. Anita Sahdiieva (LSU) def. Sonja Rooth (SFA) 6-3, 6-2
5. Kinaa Graham (LSU) vs. Antonella Taco (SFA) 6-4, 3-4, DNF
6. Kenna Erickson (LSU) vs. Ana Paula Chavez (SFA) 7-6 (7-1), 1-0, DNF

Doubles
1. #5 Cadence Brace/Kayla Cross (LSU) vs. Jemma Cave/Ana Paula Chavez (SFA) 5-3, DNF
2. Anita Sahdiieva/Kinaa Graham (LSU) def. Avery Kinsey/Ksenia Mamontova (SFA) 6-2
3. Tilwith Di Girolami/Kenna Erickson (LSU) def. Felicia Back/Sonja Rooth (SFA) 6-0

Match Notes:
LSU 22-7; National ranking #13
Stephen F. Austin 17-7
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (2,4,3)