BATON ROUGE, La. – The 13th-ranked LSU women’s tennis team is heading to Columbus to face No. 4 Ohio State in the NCAA Super Regional on Friday, May 9, at 3:00 p.m. CT at the Auer Tennis Complex.
This marks LSU’s first Super Regional appearance in 25 years and just the third in program history, with previous trips in 1995 and 2000.
The Tigers (23-7) earned their spot by hosting and winning the Baton Rouge Regional, sweeping Stephen F. Austin 4-0 and then defeating No. 18 USC 4-1 to reach the Sweet 16.
LSU has compiled an impressive 83-46 singles record and 50-19 doubles record this season, including 20 ranked singles wins and 13 in doubles. They’ve claimed the doubles point in 23 of 30 matches.
Freshman standout Cadence Brace, named SEC Freshman of the Year and a First-Team All-SEC selection, holds 12 wins at the No. 1 singles spot and is on a five-match win streak, most recently beating USC’s No. 50 Grace Piper. She is currently ranked No. 11 in singles.
Brace teams up with fellow freshman Kayla Cross to form one of the nation’s top doubles pairs, ranked No. 5 with an 11-3 record, including a 9-2 record versus ranked opponents. Their latest ranked win came against USC’s No. 12 duo.
Cross, ranked No. 49 in singles, was also named to the All-SEC Second Team and All-Freshman Team. She holds an 11-2 record at No. 2 singles and has four ranked victories, including a key comeback win over USC’s No. 81 Emma Charney.
Tilwith Di Girolami, a freshman from Belgium, leads the team with 18 singles wins, 13 of which have come at No. 3 singles. She has a three-match win streak and two ranked wins this season. In doubles, she pairs with senior Anita Sahdiieva, forming the No. 39-ranked team with a 12-5 record.
Sahdiieva, who is also ranked No. 104 in singles, has had key victories this season and helped clinch important team wins, including a pivotal match against South Carolina. She’s also teamed with sophomore Kenna Erickson to form a strong No. 3 doubles duo ranked No. 59.
Gaby Rivera and Erickson have contributed six wins at No. 3 doubles and have also won matches on the No. 2 court. Rivera, who’s also played with Di Girolami, is 7-4 in singles. Erickson has an 11-6 singles record and recently clinched a win over Missouri.
Sophomore Kinaa Graham has earned three ranked singles victories, including a dominant win over Oklahoma State’s No. 69 Marcela Lopez. She was crucial in sparking LSU’s comeback win over South Carolina.
LSU leads the all-time series against Ohio State 3-1, with their last meeting in 2012 resulting in a 4-2 Tigers victory.
Ohio State (23-3) reached the Super Regionals after defeating Buffalo 4-0 and Notre Dame 4-1. Led by head coach Melissa Schaub, the Buckeyes feature five ranked singles players and two ranked doubles teams.
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