Lady Vols tennis continued their postseason run after clearing the Knoxville regionals, with their next stop being at Charlottesville, Virginia, against the Virginia Cavaliers.
The run didn’t meet its end, as the Lady Vols rolled by Virginia, sweeping the Cavaliers 4-0 en route to the program’s fourth official Elite Eight appearance.
Through three rounds, the Lady Vols have outscored their opponents in the postseason 12-0.
No. 10 Tennessee defeats No. 7 Virginia: How it happened
Doubles play has been favorable for the No. 10 Lady Vols (20-7) their entire postseason run with two opening round wins against solid teams in Elon and Pepperdine.
The success didn’t stop against No. 7 Virginia (22-6). Tennessee head coach Alsion Ojeda rolled out the same lineup from the previous two games in postseason play, including the No. 30 duo in the nation of Leyla Britez Risso and Catherine Aulia, lined up at Court 1.
The No. 71 duo of senior Elza Tomase and freshman Saray-Yli-Piipari defeated the No. 41 duo of Martina Genis Salas and Annabelle Xu at Court 2 in an upset.
Karolina Kozakova and Melodie Collard followed up against Aulia and Britez Risso. The two Cavaliers gave the nationally ranked duo a run for their money at Court 1 after pushing the match to the 12th point, before losing 7-5 to Aulia and Britez-Risso.
The first two courts were all the Lady Vols needed, clinching the major first point against Virginia. The Lady Vols needed just three more points to clinch their fourth Elite Eight appearance in the program’s history.
Singles play continued a theme that read all Lady Vols at almost every court. By the end of the first set, five out of six courts led 1-0 in favor of Tennessee.
Vanesa Suarez was the first to strike blood in solo action. She claimed Court 4 in a two-set sweep, scoring 6-1 and 6-0. Suarez’s ability to keep the back half of the single-court under control has been a massive instrument towards the Lady Vols’ success as postseason play continues to roll through.
After Suarez’s win, which gave Tennessee the 2-0 lead, Aulia claimed Court 2 in two sets, scoring 6-3 and 6-0.
Aulia, whose last match against Pepperdine was unfinished, bounced back in a big way against Virginia and pushed the Lady Vols ahead 3-0 over the Cavaliers.
Leading 3-0 and needing just one point to clinch a spot in the Elite Eight, No.7 singles player Tomase handled No. 27 Sara Ziodato in two sets at Court 1.
With the Tomase victory, Tennessee had officially swept Virginia out of their own stadium, and for the second straight season, the Lady Vols clinched a spot in the Elite Eight.
This is the second appearance in the Elite Eight as head coach for Ojeda with the Lady Vols. Last season saw Tennessee upset No. 1-seeded Oklahoma State on their home court en route to the program’s second official Final Four appearance.
The Lady Vols will take on No. 2 Texas A&M in the Elite Eight on May 15.
