The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
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Kansas
No. 2 Women’s Tennis preview: Big 12 Championship
04.22.2021 | Women's Tennis
The Longhorns sport a 15-match win streak entering Friday’s quarterfinal contest in Waco (3 p.m. CT).
No. 2 TEXAS (22-1, 9-0 Big 12)
When: Friday, April 23 (3 p.m. CT); Saturday, April 24 (12 p.m. CT); Sunday, April 25 (1 p.m. CT)
Where: Hurd Tennis Center (Waco, Texas)
How to Follow: All matches will have a live stats link. The link will be determined by where the match is being played (Grandstand Courts, Riverside Courts, Hawkins Indoors). Matches held on the Grandstand Courts or at the Hawkins Indoor facility will also have a live stream available at the following link. Matches held at the Riverside Courts will not have a live stream.
Impressive Regular Season: No. 2 Texas is off to a 22-1 start in dual-match play this spring with 12 victories against Top 50 opponents, including six over Top 25 opponents. The Longhorns have defeated No. 2 UCLA (4-2), No. 7 Baylor (7-0), No. 13 Northwestern (4-1), No. 15 Baylor (6-1), No. 18 UCF (4-0), No. 23 Baylor (4-0), No. 27 Rice (4-0), No. 28 Texas Tech (4-1), No. 31 Oklahoma State (6-1), No. 32 Oklahoma (7-0), No. 42 Iowa State (7-0) and No. 49 Kansas (6-1). UT's only loss was a 4-3 thriller to No. 1 North Carolina in the championship match of the ITA Indoor Championship (Feb. 7). The Longhorns enter the Big 12 tourney sporting a 15-match win streak.
Three-Peat: With its perfect 9-0 record in Big 12 play this year, UT claimed its third-consecutive outright Big 12 regular-season title. The Longhorns went 9-0 in Big 12 play in 2018 and matched the feat in 2019. There was no league champion crowned in 2020 due to COVID-19. Texas has now captured 23 regular-season league titles, including 11 in the Big 12 Conference (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001-co, 2002, 2004, 2007-co, 2018, 2019 and 2021) and 12 in the Southwest Conference (1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988-co, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1996). This marks the first time that the Longhorns have won three-straight outright Big 12 regular-season titles since they earned four consecutive outright crowns from 1997-2000.
Big 12 Tourney Success: Texas has captured the Big 12 Tournament championship title a total of 10 times entering this year's event (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2012, 2013 and 2018). The Longhorns also claimed nine Southwest Conference tourney crowns (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1996).
Big 12 Streak: Texas owns a current 31-match win streak in Big 12 regular-season dual matches. The Longhorns have not dropped a conference regular-season contest since a 4-2 loss at Baylor on April 12, 2017.
Simply Dominant: UT has recorded 15 sweeps in its first 22 dual-match victories, including six of its nine Big 12 Conference regular-season matches. Texas has won the doubles point in 21 of its first 23 matches (20-1 when winning the doubles point) and registered a doubles mark of 45-8 (.849) in dual-match action. The Longhorns also boast a 106-12 record (.898) in singles play in dual-match action this spring.
Team Rankings: Texas is No. 2 in the latest Oracle ITA Collegiate Division I team national rankings coaches poll (April 21). The Longhorns have held the No. 2 spot for 11 consecutive weeks. This marks the highest ranking for UT since the 2005 season. The Longhorns have finished each of the last three years in the Top 10 of the final Oracle ITA national polls. UT earned a No. 6 final ranking in 2018, a No. 9 ranking in 2019 and a No. 4 ranking in 2020.
Individual Rankings: Five UT players are included in the current Oracle ITA national Top 125 singles rankings (April 21): freshman Peyton Stearns (No. 28), senior Anna Turati (No. 29), freshman Kylie Collins (No. 53), freshman Lulu Sun (No. 68) and freshman Charlotte Chavatipon (No. 75). In addition, three pairs of Longhorns are tabbed in the current Oracle ITA national Top 90 doubles rankings (April 21): Kylie Collins and Lulu Sun (No. 17), Peyton Stearns and Charlotte Chavatipon (No. 42) and Anna Turati and Fernanda Labraña (No. 86).
ITA Indoor Nationals Runner-Up: Texas advanced to the championship match at the ITA Division I National Team Indoor Championship in Stillwater on Feb. 5-7. The Longhorns posted a 4-1 win against No. 13 Northwestern in the quarterfinals (Feb. 5) before earning a 4-2 victory against No. 2 UCLA in the semifinals (Feb. 6). Texas dropped a 4-3 heart-breaker to No. 1 North Carolina in the title match (Feb. 7). UT made its first appearance in the ITA Indoor championship match since 2006.
ITA Indoors All-Tournament Team Honors: A quartet of Longhorns earned All-Tournament Team honors at the ITA National Indoor Championship. A pair of doubles tandems claimed the honor, as Kylie Collins and Lulu Sun gained recognition for their play at No. 1 doubles, and Anna Turati and Fernanda Labraña garnered the accolade for their performance at No. 2 doubles. Collins and Sun posted a 3-0 mark on court 1, while Turati and Labraña went 2-0 on court 2. Collins also earned a spot in singles on the All-Tournament team, as she earned a 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) win against UCLA's Annette Goulak on court 6 in the semifinals and a 7-5, 6-3 victory against No. 49 Makenna Jones on court 5 in the championship match against North Carolina.
Freshman Doubles Pair Turning Heads: UT's freshman pair of Kylie Collins and Lulu Sun have been excellent at the top doubles line this season. The No. 14-ranked tandem defeated a top-10 ranked opponent in three consecutive dual matches and sports a 14-3 mark in dual-match play this spring (5-2 against nationally-ranked opponents). Collins and Sun began their impressive run with a 6-4 win against UCLA's No. 1-ranked pair of Elysia Bolton and Jada Hart in the ITA Indoors semifinals (Feb. 6). The Texas tandem followed with a 6-2 victory over North Carolina's No. 3-ranked duo of Sara Daavettila and Alexa Graham in the ITA Indoors championship match (Feb. 7). Collins and Sun added a 6-2 win against UCF's No. 6-ranked pair of Marie Mattel and Rebeka Stolmar (Feb. 27).
Turati Returns: With the NCAA granting all spring sports student-athletes an additional year of eligibility due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Anna Turati elected to return for her 'super' senior season in 2021. In her five years with the Longhorns, she has compiled a career overall singles mark of 111-19, including a 75-11 record in dual-match play. Turati also sports a career overall doubles mark of 64-29, including a 55-22 record in dual-match play. She has posted a 17-3 mark this spring in dual-match singles play and a 12-0 mark with Fernanda Labraña in doubles. Turati posted back-to-back straight-set singles wins against ranked opponents, earning a 6-3, 7-5 victory against No. 6 Cameron Morra (North Carolina) and a 6-0, 6-2 win over No. 42 Rebeka Stolmar (UCF). She is on pace to earn her bachelor's degree in Exercise Science in May 2021.
Big 12 Honors for Turati: Anna Turati was named the Big 12 Player of the Week (March 28). She earned her third career weekly conference honor, as she previously claimed the accolade on April 9, 2019 and Jan. 14, 2020. Turati posted a 4-0 mark (2-0 singles, 2-0 doubles) in the dual-match wins against No. 27 Rice and No. 7 Baylor.
Looking Back at Turati in 2020: Anna Turati earned her first career ITA singles All-America honor last year and concluded the 2020 season at No. 4 in the final Oracle ITA national singles rankings (March 3). She was named the ITA Texas Regional Most Improved Senior, and she shared the ITA Texas Regional Senior Player of the Year honors with her twin sister, Bianca Turati. Anna Turati registered a 22-4 overall singles mark during the 2019-20 season and earned Big 12 Conference Player of the Week accolades on Jan. 14. She posted an 11-1 mark at the No. 2 singles line for the Longhorns in dual-match play in the spring, including three wins against ranked opponents. In the fall of 2019, Turati registered an 11-3 singles mark against collegiate competition, advancing to the quarterfinals at the Oracle ITA Masters, the semifinals at the ITA All-American Championships and the championship match at the ITA National Fall Championships. Nine of her 11 wins came against ITA nationally-ranked opponents, including three Top-10 wins against No. 2 Estela Perez-Somarribba (Miami, Fla.), No. 5 Kelly Chen (Duke) and No. 7 Sara Daavettila (North Carolina).
Turati's Pro Success: Anna Turati has won four International Tennis Federation (ITF) 15k pro circuit singles titles and three doubles titles since the start of summer 2019. She captured three 15k singles championships and one doubles title in the summer of 2019 on clay courts in Tabarka, Tunisia. Turati later won her first 15k singles title on hardcourt at the ITF Norman (Okla.) tourney in October 2019. She also paired with teammate Fernanda Labraña to win the doubles crown in Norman, and she teamed with twin sister Bianca Turati to capture the doubles championship at the ITF 15k tourney in Austin – the H-E-B Women's Pro Tennis Open in October 2019.
The Nation's Top Recruiting Class: UT's freshman class was ranked No. 1 in the nation by TennisRecruiting.net. This marked the first time since TennisRecruiting.net began its recruiting team rankings in 2005 that UT claimed the top-ranked class in the nation. Three of UT's freshmen (Charlotte Chavatipon, Malaika Rapolu and Peyton Stearns) were ranked among the Top 10 in the Class of 2020.
Stearns is Solid: Peyton Stearns has posted a 14-5 overall record in singles action this season, including a 10-2 mark in dual-match play this spring on court 1. Stearns claimed an impressive 6-3, 6-2 win against No. 9 Elysia Bolton of UCLA in the semifinals of the ITA Indoor Championship (Feb. 6). She also registered a 2-6, 7-5, 1-0 (10-4) victory over No. 59 Mel Krywoj of Baylor (March 28) and a 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (10-7) win against No. 69 Marie Norris of TCU (April 18). In addition, Stearns claimed a pair of impressive three-set wins at the ITF 80K event in Tyler, Texas (October 2020). She topped WTA No. 210 Chihiro Muramatsu (6-3, 3-6, 1-0 [10-6]) and WTA No. 173 Veronica Cepede Royg (6-4, 2-6, 1-0 [10-4]). Stearns has paired with Charlotte Chavatipon in doubles and registered an 11-1 mark in dual-match action while earning a No. 47 ITA ranking.
Big 12 Honors for Stearns: Peyton Stearns was named the Big 12 Player of the Week (Feb. 2). She recorded a three-set win (7-6 [7-4], 3-6, 6-2) on court 1 singles against Carmen Corley to provide the clinching point in UT's 4-3 win at Oklahoma on Jan. 30.
This Sun Shines Bright: Freshman Lulu Sun has registered a 16-2 record in dual-match singles action this spring. She earned a 7-5, 6-2 victory against No. 77 Ayumi Miyamoto of Oklahoma State (March 19) and a 2-6, 7-5, 1-0 (10-7) win over No. 111 Alicia Herrero-Linana of Baylor (March 28). Sun added a 6-4, 6-4 victory against No. 102 Malkia Ngounoue of Kansas (April 9) and a 6-2, 6-0 win over No. 108 Kaitlin Staines (April 18). She has posted a 6-1 mark on court 2 and a 10-1 record on court 3. Sun also has paired with freshman Kylie Collins on court 1 in doubles and registered a 14-3 mark and a No. 14 ITA ranking.
Big 12 Honors for Sun: Lulu Sun was named the Big 12 Player of the Week (April 14). She went a combined 4-0 in singles and doubles while leading Texas to wins at No. 49 Kansas (6-1) and K-State (7-0). Her weekend was highlighted by a 6-4, 6-4 win on court 2 singles against No. 102 Malkia Ngounoue of Kansas (April 12).
Sun's Pro Success: Lulu Sun claimed the singles title at the ITF 15K tournament in Monastir, Tunisia on Dec. 13, 2020. This marked her third career ITF singles crown, as she previously earned 15K championships at Port Pirie, Australia (Feb. 17, 2019) and Perth, Australia (Feb. 24). Sun, who had to advance through two rounds of qualifying before the tourney's 32-player main draw began, won a total of seven matches in an eight-day span (Dec. 6-13) in Monastir. She posted straight-set victories in each of her first six matches prior to her three-set win (6-0, 2-6, 6-2 against WTA No. 433 Carole Monnet) in the final. All five of her main-draw opponents were among the top 851 players in the WTA rankings, including three in the top 500. Sun also advanced to the singles final at the ITF 15K event in Sharm-El Sheikh, Egypt (Nov. 16-22). She paired with partner Valentina Ryser and claimed runner-up finishes in doubles on back-to-back weeks (Nov. 2-8 and Nov. 9-15) at ITF 15K tourneys in Sharm-El Sheikh.
Charlotte's Web: Charlotte Chavatipon has registered a 20-1 mark in singles this season, including a 17-1 record in dual-match play this spring. She also advanced to the main draw singles semifinals at the UTR 18K tourney in Austin in November. Chavatipon has paired with Peyton Stearns in doubles and registered a 11-1 mark in dual-match play while earning a No. 47 ITA ranking.
'Young' Freshmen: Kylie Collins completed her high school degree one semester early and enrolled at UT in January. Collins has tallied a 14-2 mark in dual-match singles play this spring, and she has teamed with Lulu Sun on court 1 in doubles and registered a 14-3 mark and a No. 14 ITA ranking. Rapolu finished her high school academic work one year early and reclassified to enroll at UT in August. Rapolu has posted a 22-2 record in singles this year, including a 15-1 mark in dual-match play (7-0 in Big 12 action).
Big 12 Honors for Collins: Kylie Collins was named the Big 12 Player of the Week (Feb. 9). Collins went a perfect 5-0 (3-0 in doubles, 2-0 in singles) during UT's run to the championship match of the ITA Indoor Championships in Stillwater. She paired with Lulu Sun on court 1 in doubles and posted three wins over the three-day event, including a pair of victories over top-three nationally ranked opponents. In singles play, she earned a 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) victory on court 6 against Annette Goulak of UCLA and a 7-5, 6-3 win on court 5 against No. 49-ranked Makenna Jones of North Carolina.
Fena's World: Senior Fernanda Labraña has registered a 20-2 overall record in singles this year, including a 13-1 mark in dual-match play. Labraña claimed a 6-3, 6-2 win against No. 71 Livia Kraus of Baylor (March 28). She also has paired with Anna Turati in doubles this spring and posted a perfect 12-0 mark.
Home Success at the TTC: The Longhorns are in their fourth year at the Texas Tennis Center. UT has registered a 39-3 mark in dual matches at the TTC, including a 15-0 record in Big 12 regular-season matches. During its inaugural season in 2018, Texas went 13-0 at home (5-0 in Big 12 play). The Longhorns went 8-2 at the TTC in 2019 (3-0 Big 12) and 7-1 in the shortened 2020 season (2-0 Big 12). UT is 11-0 at the TTC this year (5-0 Big 12).
Joffe in Year Six: Head Coach Howard Joffe is in his sixth season leading the UT program. Joffe has registered a 106-32 (.768) mark in his six years at Texas and a 237-93 (.718) record in 14 seasons as a collegiate head coach. He has helped a trio of Longhorns earn a total of four ITA All-America honors in singles (Breaunna Addison in 2016, Bianca Turati in 2018, Anna Turati and Bianca Turati in 2020), while seven of his UT players have registered a combined 11 All-Big 12 singles and eight All-Big 12 doubles selections.
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Players Mentioned
