No. 10-Seeded LSU Eliminates Rice, 4-1; Returns to NCAA Super Regional for Second Straight Season

BATON ROUGE, La. – Freshman Carolina Kuhl posted a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 come-from-behind clinching result as the No. 10-seeded LSU women’s tennis team downed Rice, 4-1, on Sunday afternoon at the LSU Tennis Complex.

LSU improves to 21-9 while Rice’s season concludes at 18-7. The Tigers advance to the NCAA Super Regionals for the fourth time in program history (1995, 2000, 2025, 2026) and for the second consecutive season.

“It’s a great thing for our program to be in back-to-back Sweet 16s,” said head coach Taylor Fogleman. “Rice really pushed us to the brink today. I worked for Elizabeth (Schmidt) for three years, and she’s one of the best coaches in the country at preparing her team, especially this time of year. They challenged us in a lot of different positions, but I thought we handled ourselves well in the business end of some third sets to get over the line. We’re really excited for another opportunity to play. It’ll be on the road against a really good Virginia team that won the ACC regular season, so we’ll have to play a bit better if we want to get through that. I’m super proud of the girls and everyone involved in the program. We’re taking steps in the right direction and, even though there’s certainly more we want to do, we’ll enjoy this one and get ready for Virginia on Saturday.”

No. 17 Kenna Erickson and Ella McDonald started doubles play on the second court against Francesca Maguina and Ema Mravcova. The LSU duo quickly took a 2-1 lead before Maguina and Mravcova stole a game. Afterward, Erickson and McDonald secured the final four of five games for a 6-2 set win.

Addison Lanton and Kuhl looked to clinch the doubles point on court No. 3 against Divna Ratkovic and Daniela Chica. In a back-and-forth set that featured two early ties, Lanton and Kuhl trailed 3-2 before taking their first lead at 5-3, ultimately closing out a 6-4 win to secure the doubles point for LSU.

Opening singles play, No. 9 Cadence Brace took on Darya Schwartzman on court No. 1. After trailing 1-0, Brace responded to take a 2-1 lead before the set was tied at 2-2. Brace regained control at 4-2 and later closed out the opening set, 6-3. In the second set, Brace dominated early with a 5-0 lead, and after dropping a game, sealed the match with a 6-1 set victory for a 2-0 Tiger lead.

Kinaa Graham was up next on court No. 6 against Mravcova. After taking an early 3-2 lead in the opening set, Graham dropped the set, 6-3. In the second, the junior battled back from a 4-1 deficit to tie it at 5-5, but ultimately fell 7-5, altering the match score to 2-1.

Looking to stifle Rice’s rally, No. 77 McDonald took on Uma Bakaityte on the third court. In a tightly contested opening set, McDonald battled through four lead changes and ties and held a 6-5 advantage before narrowly dropping the set in a tiebreaker, 7-6(6). The England native responded with authority in the second, jumping out to a 3-0 lead and later closing out a 6-3 set win. In the deciding third set, McDonald controlled from the start, building a 4-1 advantage and earning the final two of four games to post a 6-3 win to secure the match and a 3-1 LSU advantage.

In a position to send the Tigers to the NCAA Super Regional, Kuhl battled Nithesa Selvaraj on court No. 5. After taking a 3-2 lead in the opening set, Kuhl surrendered the final four games to fall, 6-3. The freshman responded with a dominant 6-2 second set after building a 5-0 advantage. In the deciding third set, Kuhl took an early 2-1 lead before falling behind 3-2, but regained momentum to win four of the final five games and secure a 6-4 victory to clinch the match for LSU. Kuhl now holds an 18-7 record and extends her winning streak to eight matches.

Up Next

LSU travels to Charlottesville to take on No. 7-seeded Virginia in an NCAA Super Regional matchup on Saturday, May 9, at noon CT.

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

LSU vs. Rice
05/03/26 at Baton Rouge, La
LSU Tennis Complex
#10 LSU 4, Rice 1

Singles Competition
1. #9 Cadence Brace (LSU) def. Darya Schwartzman (RICE) 6-3, 6-1
2. #21 Kayla Cross (LSU) vs. Divna Ratkovic (RICE) 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 0-3, unfinished
3. #77 Ella McDonald (LSU) def. Uma Bakaityte (RICE) 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 6-3
4. #96 Addison Lanton (LSU) vs. Francesca Maguina (RICE) 6-4, 4-6, 5-6, unfinished
5. Carolina Kuhl (LSU) def. Nithesa Selvaraj (RICE) 3-6, 6-2, 6-4
6. Kinaa Graham (LSU) fell to Ema Mravcova (RICE) 3-6, 5-7

Doubles Competition
1. #40 Cadence Brace/Kayla Cross (LSU) vs. #59 Darya Schwartzman/Uma Bakaityte (RICE) 4-5, unfinished
2. #17 Kenna Erickson/Ella McDonald (LSU) def. Francesca Maguina/Ema Mravcova (RICE) 6-2
3. Addison Lanton/Carolina Kuhl (LSU) def. Divna Ratkovic/Daniela Chica (RICE) 6-4

Match Notes:
LSU 21-9; National ranking #10
Rice 18-7; National ranking #42
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (1,6,3,5)