Columbia, S.C. – No. 22 South Carolina women’s tennis will play its first home SEC matches of the season this weekend at the Carolina Tennis Center with a pair of top-20 teams joining the Gamecocks in Columbia. South Carolina will take on No. 16 Tennessee on Friday at 5:00 p.m. and will face No. 10 Georgia on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
Admission to both matches will be free with gates opening one hour prior to first serve. Fan parking is available at meters surrounding the athletic village, subject to City of Columbia parking fees. Free parking is also available at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center located at 523 Superior Street.
Gamecock Notables
- South Carolina is ranked No. 22 in the latest ITA team rankings and has been ranked as high as No. 14 this season. The team is 8-3 overall this season and 0-2 against SEC opponents. The Gamecocks have a perfect 6-0 home record.
- There are three Gamecocks in the ITA singles rankings – No. 8 Ayana Akli, No. 10 Sarah Hamner, and No. 125 Shahar Biran.
- Akli is 19-7 this season and 6-3 in dual play, all from the top of the lineup. She has ten ranked wins this season with three of them in the top-25.
- Hamner leads the team with a 20-6 overall record this season and 7-1 mark in dual play. She has 12 ranked wins and has won eight of her last nine completed matches.
- Biran is 10-11 this season and 5-4 from the third spot in the lineup.
- In doubles, Akli is ranked twice – at No. 30 with Olympe Lancelot and at No. 41 with Hamner.
- Akli and Lancelot are 7-2 together this season and 4-2 from the top of the doubles lineup.
- Akli and Hamner are 5-5 this season and 2-1 in dual play.
Scouting the Volunteers
- Tennessee is currently ranked No. 16 by the ITA, the teams highest ranking of the season. They are 10-2 overall and a perfect 4-0 when playing on the road this season. The team enters the weekend on a five-match win streak that includes a pair of conference victories.
- In the ITA singles rankings, Sofia Cabezas sits at No. 27 and Catherine Aulia sits at No. 121
- Cabezas leads the team from the top of the lineup where she is 7-2. Aulia is 8-3 this season and has had stints at the Nos. 2, 3, and 4 positions.
- There are four Volunteer pairs in the ITA doubles rankings with Cabezas and Esther Adeshina the highest ranked at No. 23.
- The Vols are 22-6 in dual doubles matches this season.
Scouting the Bulldogs
- Georgia is ranked No. 10 in the ITA team rankings and has a 7-3 overall record with a 2-0 mark in conference play….