NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt women’s tennis hits the road for a weekend series of Southeastern Conference play this Friday and Sunday at Auburn and Alabama. After concluding the non-conference slate with an 8-1 record, the Commodores are currently poised in third among SEC teams.
Debriefing
The Commodores made their return to the court last weekend with a double header sweep of Wofford and Belmont.
Opening the Sunday marathon with Wofford, the women picked up the doubles point quickly before advancing to claim five of six singles courts for the 6-1 final.
Later, the home Commodores welcomed in-city foe Belmont to the Currey Tennis Center for a 7-0 sweep. After finishing the doubles off strong, having been down 5-1 on two courts before knotting things up to force the tie break, Vanderbilt breezed to a singles sweep to round out their non-conference play.
Scouting Report
The Commodores take on two SEC rivals just below them in the conference standings to open their season.
Heading into conference play, Auburn owns a 9-2 overall record and currently sit fifth in the SEC ranks. Most recently they defeated Tulane, 5-2, after dropping a close match to Ohio State, 4-3, in the consolation draw of the ITA Indoor National Championships. The two teams meet for a top-25 matchup as the Tigers rank 11th in the country at the latest poll. Their top singles, Ariana Areseneault is ranked 52nd nationally followed by Selin Ovunc at 60th and Carolyn Ansari at 104. At doubles, Arseneault and Ovunc team up as the 44th-best pair in the country.
Alabama currently owns the fourth-best record among conference teams with a 10-2 overall mark. In their last outing the Crimson Tide went 1-2 in the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic in Montgomery, Alabama. In singles, Petra Sedlackova ranks 124th nationally for the Crimson Tide while the pair of Loudmilla Bencheikh and Anne Marie Hiser are 33rd with a 16-3 record at doubles this season.
ITA Rankings
- After opening their season with an 8-1 record, the Commodores come into the weekend ranked 22nd nationally by the ITA.
- Anna Ross jumped into the rankings with a singles nod of 43rd nationally at the latest release (Feb. 24).
- Often competing at No. 2 singles, Anessa Lee moved into the top-100 in February, coming into the weekend at 92nd overall.
On the Radar
The Commodores open their home SEC slate March 11 and 13 when they host Arkansas and Missouri as part of Alumni Weekend.
