No. 12 LSU Concludes Regular Season at Kentucky, No. 19 Tennessee

BATON ROUGE, La. – The No. 12 LSU women’s tennis team wraps up the regular season on the road this week, facing Kentucky on Apr. 9 at 4:00 p.m. CT before battling No. 19 Tennessee on Apr. 11 at noon CT.

According to the latest official ITA rankings (Apr. 7), LSU ranks No. 12 in the dual season team rankings.

Last time out, the Tigers hosted two matches at the LSU Tennis Complex, earning a 4-1 win over Alabama and a 4-0 sweep on Senior Day against Mississippi State.  

LSU holds a 14-7 record on the season and has clinched the doubles point in 13 of its matches. The Tigers own a 55-30 singles mark and a 32-19 doubles record.

The Tigers feature four ranked singles players in No. 26 Cadence Brace, No. 44 Kayla Cross, No. 117 Kinaa Graham, and No. 119 Addison Lanton in the latest ITA rankings. Furthermore, LSU has three ranked doubles pairings: No. 16 Cross and Ella McDonald, No. 30 Kenna Erickson and McDonald, and No. 63 Brace and Cross.

Cross holds a 4-1 singles mark on the season. The sophomore holds three ranked victories on the campaign, highlighted by most recently clinching the 4-1 victory against Alabama’s then-No. 73 Klara Millicevic, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

Brace holds a 7-3 mark on the top spot, behind four ranked victories, highlighted by taking down Vanderbilt’s then-No. 33 Bridget Stammel, 6-3, 6-1.

McDonald checks in with a 6-3 singles mark. She posted a ranked victory to clinch the match win against Florida’s then-No. 26 Gabia Paskauskas, 6-2, 6-3.

Against NC State, McDonald and Cross struck up a partnership to take down NC State’s then-No. 2 Broadfoot/Victoria Osuigwe, 7-6(6). Since then, the duo has a 3-1 record this season, all against ranked opponents.

Beyond teaming with Cross, McDonald has earned six doubles wins on the season with Erickson. Likewise, Erickson has collected four singles victories, riding a two-match winning streak, on the third and fifth courts this season.

Lanton continues her strong freshman campaign with a team-leading 14-2 mark behind victories on the first, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth courts. Lanton is also currently riding a five-match winning streak in singles. In doubles play, the freshman has earned 11 total victories with four different partners.

Following ITA Kickoff Weekend, on Jan. 28, Carolina Kuhl was named the SEC Freshman of the Week. Kuhl has registered a 11-7 record in singles play.

Kentucky holds nine wins on the season with one conference victory. The Wildcats are represented in the ITA singles rankings by No. 73 Zoe Hammond and No. 99 Julia Zhu. In doubles, No. 57 Asuncion Jadue and Reese Sager make up the lone ranked pairing. Head coach Shelley Jaudon leads the program in her third season. LSU holds 27 wins all-time against the Wildcats and is riding a four-match winning streak.

Tennessee, ranked No. 19, holds a 20-8 overall record with a 10-5 conference mark. Tennessee has four ranked singles players in No. 27 Leyla Britez-Risso, No. 29 Katrina Scott, No. 85 Vanesa Suarez, and No. 115 Catherine Aulia. The Volunteers are represented in the doubles rankings by No. 27 Aulia and Britez-Risso, No. 32 Francesca Mattioli and Suarez, and No. 51 Mattioli and Maeve Thornton. Head coach Alison Ojeda leads the program in her 10th season at the helm. The Tigers hold 21 all-time wins against Tennessee, including a 4-0 triumph earlier this season at the ITA National Indoor Championships.

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