The University of Mississippi Athletics
Friday, March 10
Auburn, AL
3 PM
Ole Miss
at
Auburn
Women's Tennis Hits the Road for Two Matches in Alabama
3/9/2023 | Women's Tennis
Rebels are at No. 7 Auburn on Friday and at Alabama on Sunday
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OLE MISS (7-3, 1-1 SEC) at Auburn (11-2, 1-0 SEC) Friday, March 10 • 3 p.m. CT • Auburn, AL Alabama Tennis Center at Alabama (7-4, 0-1 SEC) Sunday, March 12 • 1 p.m. CT • Tuscaloosa, AL Yarbrough Tennis Center |
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Live scoring and live video for both matches will be available to the public. Links to both can be found above as well as on the Ole Miss women's tennis schedule page.
SERVICE LINE
- The Rebels earned their first SEC win over the season with a 4-0 sweep over No. 58 Kentucky. The team is 1-1 in SEC play.
- The win over No. 58 Kentucky was also the team's first ranked win of the season.
- Ole Miss have won two of the last three meetings against Auburn. In 2020-21, the Rebels went to Auburn and got the 4-0 sweep over the No. 18 Tigers
- Ole Miss hold a six-match win streak against Alabama with two ranked wins the last two seasons.
- Ole Miss are looking for their first road win of the season.
- The Rebels are 28-30 in conference matches the last five seasons.
- The program has compiled a 65-49 record on Friday matches and a 51-49 record on Sunday matches in the last 15 seasons. The Rebels are 0-2 on Friday this season and 3-1 on Sunday
- Ole Miss has four players with double-digit singles wins on the young season.
- The team is locked down at No. 5 singles, not losing one in eight matches at that position (6-0)
- The bottom of the lineup overall has been stellar with a 7-2 record at the No. 6 position.
- Lillian and Kelsey are 5-1 at No. 2 doubles in dual matches. Overall, they are 7-4 as a duo.
- Ludmila Kareisova remained ranked in the latest ITA Singles Rankings, announced on February 21, at No. 101
- Ole Miss finds themselves ranked for the first time this season at No. 73 in the last ITA National Team Rankings.
Lillian Gabrielsen (Sr.) – Oslo, Norway
- Compiled a 12-9 overall singles record and a 9-7 overall doubles record
- Made the ITA Fall National Championships in singles as the South Region runner-up
- Reached the round of 16 in doubles at the ITA South Region Championships in 2021
Ludmila Kareisova (So.) – Liberec, Czechia
- Has an 11-7 singles record and 9-5 doubles record
- She is also 4-2 against ranked opponents in singles. SHe recently defeated Vanderbilt's No. 65 Anna Ross
- ITA South Region Championships doubles runner-up which earned a spot in the ITA National in 2021
Emma Kette (Fr.) – Rammelsbach, Germany
- Has a 7-4 singles record and a 5-3 doubles record (7-1 in dual singles)
- First Rebel freshman since Alexa Bortles in 2016-17 to start her dual career 6-0
- Joined the squad this January
- Coming in with an overall singles record of 12-9
Rachel Krzyzak (So.) – Milton, Ontario, Canada
- Rejoined the lineup on Saturday against Tennessee State. She earned her first dual singles and doubles win.
- Compiled an 18-11 singles record and 15-15 doubles record during the 2021-22 season
Anaelle Leclercq-Ficher (So.) – La Perche, France
- Has a 4-8 singles record and a 7-4 doubles record
- Reached doubles quarterfinals of ITA South Region Championships in 2021
- Voted SEC Freshman of the Year on March 2, 2021
Kelsey Mize (Sr.*) – Tulsa, Okla.
- Has an 11-9 singles record and a 8-6 doubles record
- Her and Lillian Gabrielsen are 5-1 in dual matches together to start the season
- ITA South Region Championships doubles runner-up in 2021, advanced to ITA Fall Nationals
Reka Zadori (Jr.) – Szeged, Hungary
- Has a 14-9 singles record and a 8-8 doubles record. Leads team in singles wins
- Made it to the singles quarterfinals of the ITA South Region Championships in 2021
- Also reached doubles quarterfinals of ITA South Region Championships in 2021
LAST TIME ON THE COURT
- Ole Miss women's tennis went 1-1 with a loss to No. 18 Vanderbilt and a sweep over No. 58 Kentucky
- The win marks the Rebels first SEC win and their first ranked win of the season.
- Despite losing the match to the Commodores, Ole Miss fought hard and came away with two ranked singles wins. Kareisova took down No. 65 Anna Ross and Zadori defeated No. 98 Anessa Lee.
- Against Kentucky, Gabrielsen and Mize got back to their winning ways with a strong 6-2 win at No. 2 doubles.
- Needing to win for the doubles point, Leclercq-Ficher and Kareisova got the job done with a 6-3 win at No.1 doubles.
- Kareisova took that momentum into singles, finishing first in a 6-2, 6-0 straight set victory at the second position.
- Gabrielsen followed right behind Kareisova with her own straight set win, defeating her opponent at No. 3 singles by a score of 6-2, 6-2
- Kette's 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 4 singles clinched the match for the Rebels
- The Rebels won eight of the nine completed opening sets.
MILESTONE MARKER
- Gabrielsen is seven doubles wins away from 50 in her career and four dual doubles wins from 40.
- Gabrielsen needs three singles wins to break a new career season-high and one dual singles win from 20.
- Kareisova is two dual doubles wins and two overall singles wins from a career season high.
- Kareisova is five overall doubles wins and seven overall singles from 30 in her career.
- Kette just three overall and dual singles wins from 10 in both categories. She is also five doubles wins from 10.
- Krzyzak is three overall doubles wins away from 20.
- Leclercq-Ficher is three overall singles wins from 20 in her career.
- Mize earned her 20th overall doubles win against No. 58 Kentucky. She is also three dual doubles wins away from a career season-high.
- Mize is two overall doubles wins away from a career season-high.
- Zadori reached her 40th career singles win against No. 98 Anessa Lee in the loss to Vanderbilt.
- Zadori's 14 singles wins this season are a new career season-high.
HEAD COACH MARK BEYERS
- Beyers is in his 22nd year coaching the Ole Miss women's tennis team.
- He has compiled a 277-233 record with Ole Miss and a 324-241 career record.
- Beyers earned ITA South Region Coach of the Year in 2010, 2012, and 2018.
- He has led the team to seven NCAA Second Round appearances and one Sweet 16 appearance.
- He coached the only Ole Miss NCAA Singles Champion, Arianne Hartono, in 2018, as well as four CoSIDA Academic All-Americans and 35 All-SEC honorees.
- Prior to Ole Miss, Beyers spent three seasons as the head coach of the women's tennis team at his alma mater Armstrong Atlantic State. The team captured the NCAA DII National Championship, posted a 50-8 record and won the Peach Belt Conference each year.
OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE NET
Auburn
The Tigers are off to a strong 2022-23 campaign, compiling a 11-2 record and 1-0 SEC record. Auburn is currently ranked tied for the seventh-best team in the nation, according to the ITA National Team Rankings. The team has also shown a level of toughness, winning four matches by a score of 4-3. Senior Carolyn Ansari leads the team in singles with a 9-4 record while also being the highest ranked at No. 41. The Tigers also brought back junior Ariana Arseneault, who is 7-4 in singles and ranked No. 46. Together in doubles, Ansari and Arsenault are ranked No. 20 in the nation. The Tigers have three ranked doubles teams at No. 51 and No. 64 as well. However, the Tigers dual double success has come from their freshmen. Freshmen DJ Bennett and Kaitlyn Carnicella are 6-3 in doubles. Also Angella Okutoyi is 5-3 in doubles with Adeline Flach and ranked No. 64 in the nation.
Alabama
The Crimson Tide are off to a 7-4 start with a 0-1 SEC record after losing a tight match to No. 8 Auburn, 4-3. Before the loss, Alabama won four of its five previous matches. The team was previously ranked No. 61 but fell out of the top-75 in the latest ITA Team Rankings announced on March 7. However, they do have two ranked individuals, including one who is ranked in both singles and doubles. In her second year with the Crimson Tide, Loudmilla Bencheikh is 14-6 in singles and 6-2 in doubles. Bencheikh defeated Auburn's No. 28 Ariana Arseneault in three sets, which moved her up to No. 96 in the nation. In doubles, she is also ranked No. 58 with Anne Marie Hiser after taking down the 21st ranked doubles pairing on Sunday. The Crimson Tide's roster comprises three other players with double-digit wins. Petra Sedlackova is 11-8, freshman Klara Milicevic is 11-6, and Ola Pitak is 10-7. Pitak is also 13-3 in doubles this season.
REBS IN THE RANKINGS
The team and two individuals moved up in the latest ITA rankings. Ole Miss went from No. 73 to No. 58 in the ITA Team Rankings, announced on March 7, after a solid performance against No. 17 Vanderbilt and a 4-0 sweep over No. 53 Kentucky. Kareisova became the first Rebel to be ranked in singles and doubles. After taking down now No. 80 Anna Ross, Kareisova moved up eight spots to No. 93. The sophomore is also ranked No. 59 in doubles with fellow sophomore Leclercq-Ficher. As a duo, they have compiled a 6-1 doubles record.
CONFERENCE ACTION
The Rebels' matches against Vanderbilt on Friday and Kentucky on Sunday marked two of 13 conference matchups for the team in 2023. The squad will now hit the road for four matches in three different states against Auburn, Alabama, Arkansas and Missouri. At the end of March, Ole Miss returns to Oxford for two matches, hosting South Carolina and Florida. From there, the Rebels have a three-match road stretch, starting with Mississippi State. Then to start April, the team heads to College Station and Baton Rouge for contest against Texas A&M and LSU. The Rebels will finish the regular season at home, hosting Tennessee on April 14 and Georgia on April 16.
REKA IS RAKING
The junior from Hungary has been successful in both doubles and in multiple positions in singles this year. Zadori currently leads the team with 14 singles wins, going 7-1 in dual singles matches. She has played at three different positions at the bottom of the lineup and has seen success. On Friday, Zadori earned her first ranked singles win of the season, taking down Vanderbilt's No. 98 Anessa Lee in three sets. She dropped the first won but battled back to win the second set, 6-3, and the third set super tiebreaker, 1-0(7).
In doubles, Zadori also has eight doubles wins, tallying a 5-3 record with Kette all at No. 3 doubles.
RANKED W's
Ole Miss women's tennis had a string of ranked wins in their matches against Vanderbilt and Kentucky. It started with two ranked singles win in Friday's match with Vanderbilt. Kareisova and Zadori battled through three sets against two of the nation's best and ultimately won despite losing the first set. Kareisova dropped the first set 6-4 but bounced back with a 6-3 second-set victory. It was a back-and-forth third set super tiebreaker until Kareisova won three straight and finally it, 10-8. The Czechia native earned her first dual ranked singles win and her team-leading fourth overall, defeating No. 65 Anna Ross.
Zadori faced No. 98 Anessa Lee, who was 20-5 coming into the match, also fell in her first set, 6-2 then took the second set, 6-3, forcing a third set super tiebreaker. She started down in the third set but then turned it around for the 10-7 win, grabbing her first ranked win of the season. Let's not forget the whole team also got a ranked win over No. 58 Kentucky on March 5.
FRESHMAN SINGLES SUCCESS
The Rebels have seen dual singles success come from their first-year players the last three seasons. Two years ago, Reka Zadori came onto the scene, with the now junior going 9-4 from either the No. 5 or No. 6 position.
Last season was no different with three freshmen in Ludmila Kareisova, Rachel Krzyzak and Anaelle Leclercq-Ficher. Kareisova started 0-2 before going 10-8. Krzyzak and Leclercq-Ficher started 3-1 in their first four finished matches. Leclercq-Ficher at one point was 6-2 then ended 8-5. Krzyzak finished the year with a team-leading 13-6 dual singles record.
Now in 2023, Emma Kette is off to a 7-1 start and looks to continue the trend.
DYNAMIC DUOS
In the fall, the Rebels had success with 11 different doubles pairings. However, in dual matches Ole Miss has stuck with the same three and they have excelled. The No. 2 doubles team of Gabrielsen and Mize went 2-3 in tournament play but are now 5-1 to start the dual season.
The No. 1 and No. 3 doubles team were never paired during the fall. Leclercq-Ficher and Kareisova competed with six different doubles partners, but together, they have dominated to a 6-1 record against teams top doubles pairings. Kette and Zadori have had the same success with a 5-3 record at No. 3 doubles.
WEEKLY HONORS
Player of the Week:
Mary Stoiana- Texas A&M
Freshman of the Week:
Bridget Stammel - Vanderbilt
FOLLOW ON SOCIAL
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Tennis
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