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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Wednesday, April 15
Norman, Okla.
12 p.m.
Ole Miss
vs
Kentucky
Women’s Tennis to Begin Postseason Play in the 2026 SEC Championship
4/14/2026 | Women's Tennis
Oxford, Miss. – The No. 38 and 10th-seeded Ole Miss women's tennis team is set to play in the 2025 SEC Tournament on Wednesday, April 15, with the Rebels squaring off against the 15th-seeded Kentucky.
The opening round for Ole Miss (14-10, 6-9 SEC) is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. CT. The match against Kentucky (9-15, 1-14 SEC) and the entirety of the SEC Championship will be held at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman, Oklahoma, running from April 15-19.
Live scoring and live video for matches will be available to the public. Links to both can be found above, as well as on the Ole Miss men's tennis schedule page.
Ole Miss faced Kentucky this past Saturday, completing a 4-0 sweep to close out its regular season, and will look to continue that trend come match time. The Rebels will be leaning on their ranked lineup featuring Emily Welker, who is No. 19 in singles, and Andrea Nova and Welker, who together in doubles are No. 9 nationally.
Kentucky is coming off a conference slate where they were only able to defeat a single SEC opponent, which was the Missouri Tigers. Despite this, the Wildcats have had impressive individual performances, even boasting two ranked singles players and a ranked doubles pairing.
If Ole Miss advances to the Second Round of the tournament, they will take on the 7th-seeded Vanderbilt on April 16, on Thursday at 12 p.m.
RANKINGS
Team:
No. 38 Ole Miss
Singles:
No. 19 – Emily Welker (OM)
No. 76 – Zoe Hammond (UK)
No. 98 – Julia Zhu (UK)
Doubles:
No. 9 – Andrea Nova and Emily Welker (OM)
No. 55 – Asuncion Jadue and Reese Sager (UK)
FOLLOW THE REBELS 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 Roberts on Twitter, @gdrob91.
THE REBELS
Riley Crowder (Fr.) – Dothan, Alabama
- No. 1 recruit out of Alabama in 2025 class
- 2022 USTA Alabama State Junior and Southern Junior Player of the Year
- Ranked as high as No. 167 in the ITF World Junior circuit
-Compiled a 6-3 record in singles and a 5-4 record in doubles in the Fall of 2025
Ichino Horikawa (Sr.) – Kyoto, Japan
- Posted a career-high ITF Junior ranking of No. 173
- Secured the deciding match point in Ole Miss's upset of No.4 LSU
-Compiled a 7-6 record in singles and 7-6 record in doubles in the Fall of 2025
Andrea Nova (Jr.) – Prague, Czechia
- Went 13-12 in singles and 12-14 in doubles during her sophomore campaign
- Helped the Rebels reach the 2025 NCAA Tournament
-Along with Welker, reached the round of 16 at the 2025 NCAA Doubles Championship
Brooklyn Olson (So.) – Kansas City, Kansas
- Went 4-0 in dual singles matches in 2025
- Overall singles record of 10-8
- Blue Chip five-star recruit
Alice Soulié (So.) – Angers, France
- Paced the team in dual victories with 12 in 2025, also adding nine wins in doubles
- Nine of her wins came against conference opponents in 2025, also tops for the team
- Clinched the match-winning point against No. 13 Texas to give Ole Miss its biggest upset of the 2024-25 season
- The Soulié/Welker duo defeated Georgia's then-No. 75 tandem of Aysegul Mert and Hayden Mulberry
Emily Welker (Gr.) – Limbach-Oberfrohna, Saxony, Germany
- Ranked No. 6 in ITA singles at the end of the 2025 Fall season
- Reached the NCAA Singles Championship Semifinals in 2025, defeating opponents ranked Nos. 106, 88, 45 and 26
-Along with Nova, reached the round of 16 at the 2025 NCAA Doubles Championship
Owen Wilkinson (Fr.) – Oxford, Mississippi
- Top-ranked recruit in her class out of Mississippi, according to Tennis Recruiting Network
- Won two consecutive MHSAA Class 6A state titles in girls' singles in 2022 and 2023
Beatrice Stagno (Fr.) – Milan, Italy
-Career-high ITF Singles Ranking of 124
RETURNING REBELS
After graduating four seniors from the previous year's team, all five remaining players will remain at Ole Miss for the 2025-26 campaign. This season marks Emma Kette's fourth year with the program, as well as Andrea Nova's third year. Among those returning from last season, Nova leads with 13 wins this past spring. Emily Welker started a majority of matches at court 1 for the Rebels in 2025. Alice Soulié led the team with nine conference wins this past season.
FRESH FACES
The Rebels brought in three freshmen this offseason to round out the remainder of the roster. Riley Crowder joins the team as the No. 1 recruit coming out of Alabama this past recruiting cycle. Additionally, Owen Wilkinson will come in as the No. 1 recruit coming out of Mississippi, boasting two MHSAA Class 6A titles in girls' singles at nearby Oxford High School. Ichino Horikawa comes to Ole Miss by way of Japan after posting a career-high ITF Junior ranking of No. 173.
The opening round for Ole Miss (14-10, 6-9 SEC) is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. CT. The match against Kentucky (9-15, 1-14 SEC) and the entirety of the SEC Championship will be held at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman, Oklahoma, running from April 15-19.
Live scoring and live video for matches will be available to the public. Links to both can be found above, as well as on the Ole Miss men's tennis schedule page.
Ole Miss faced Kentucky this past Saturday, completing a 4-0 sweep to close out its regular season, and will look to continue that trend come match time. The Rebels will be leaning on their ranked lineup featuring Emily Welker, who is No. 19 in singles, and Andrea Nova and Welker, who together in doubles are No. 9 nationally.
Kentucky is coming off a conference slate where they were only able to defeat a single SEC opponent, which was the Missouri Tigers. Despite this, the Wildcats have had impressive individual performances, even boasting two ranked singles players and a ranked doubles pairing.
If Ole Miss advances to the Second Round of the tournament, they will take on the 7th-seeded Vanderbilt on April 16, on Thursday at 12 p.m.
RANKINGS
Team:
No. 38 Ole Miss
Singles:
No. 19 – Emily Welker (OM)
No. 76 – Zoe Hammond (UK)
No. 98 – Julia Zhu (UK)
Doubles:
No. 9 – Andrea Nova and Emily Welker (OM)
No. 55 – Asuncion Jadue and Reese Sager (UK)
FOLLOW THE REBELS 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 Roberts on Twitter, @gdrob91.
THE REBELS
Riley Crowder (Fr.) – Dothan, Alabama
- No. 1 recruit out of Alabama in 2025 class
- 2022 USTA Alabama State Junior and Southern Junior Player of the Year
- Ranked as high as No. 167 in the ITF World Junior circuit
-Compiled a 6-3 record in singles and a 5-4 record in doubles in the Fall of 2025
Ichino Horikawa (Sr.) – Kyoto, Japan
- Posted a career-high ITF Junior ranking of No. 173
- Secured the deciding match point in Ole Miss's upset of No.4 LSU
-Compiled a 7-6 record in singles and 7-6 record in doubles in the Fall of 2025
Andrea Nova (Jr.) – Prague, Czechia
- Went 13-12 in singles and 12-14 in doubles during her sophomore campaign
- Helped the Rebels reach the 2025 NCAA Tournament
-Along with Welker, reached the round of 16 at the 2025 NCAA Doubles Championship
Brooklyn Olson (So.) – Kansas City, Kansas
- Went 4-0 in dual singles matches in 2025
- Overall singles record of 10-8
- Blue Chip five-star recruit
Alice Soulié (So.) – Angers, France
- Paced the team in dual victories with 12 in 2025, also adding nine wins in doubles
- Nine of her wins came against conference opponents in 2025, also tops for the team
- Clinched the match-winning point against No. 13 Texas to give Ole Miss its biggest upset of the 2024-25 season
- The Soulié/Welker duo defeated Georgia's then-No. 75 tandem of Aysegul Mert and Hayden Mulberry
Emily Welker (Gr.) – Limbach-Oberfrohna, Saxony, Germany
- Ranked No. 6 in ITA singles at the end of the 2025 Fall season
- Reached the NCAA Singles Championship Semifinals in 2025, defeating opponents ranked Nos. 106, 88, 45 and 26
-Along with Nova, reached the round of 16 at the 2025 NCAA Doubles Championship
Owen Wilkinson (Fr.) – Oxford, Mississippi
- Top-ranked recruit in her class out of Mississippi, according to Tennis Recruiting Network
- Won two consecutive MHSAA Class 6A state titles in girls' singles in 2022 and 2023
Beatrice Stagno (Fr.) – Milan, Italy
-Career-high ITF Singles Ranking of 124
RETURNING REBELS
After graduating four seniors from the previous year's team, all five remaining players will remain at Ole Miss for the 2025-26 campaign. This season marks Emma Kette's fourth year with the program, as well as Andrea Nova's third year. Among those returning from last season, Nova leads with 13 wins this past spring. Emily Welker started a majority of matches at court 1 for the Rebels in 2025. Alice Soulié led the team with nine conference wins this past season.
FRESH FACES
The Rebels brought in three freshmen this offseason to round out the remainder of the roster. Riley Crowder joins the team as the No. 1 recruit coming out of Alabama this past recruiting cycle. Additionally, Owen Wilkinson will come in as the No. 1 recruit coming out of Mississippi, boasting two MHSAA Class 6A titles in girls' singles at nearby Oxford High School. Ichino Horikawa comes to Ole Miss by way of Japan after posting a career-high ITF Junior ranking of No. 173.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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