Lady Vols Undefeated at Home in 2021

Saturday, April 10

Knoxville, Tenn.

Noon ET

University of Tennessee

Alabama

KNOXVILLE, TN - 2021.04.02 - Tennessee vs. Arkansas

Photo by: Caleb Jones/Tennessee Athletics

April 10, 2021 | Women's Tennis

Box Score Results

By: Ricky Martinez

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Saturday afternoon saw the Tennessee women's tennis team blank Alabama on Senior Day, 4-0, inside the Goodfriend Tennis Center.

The Lady Vols (14-6, 8-4 SEC) wrap up the 2021 regular season undefeated at home for the fourth time in program history. The perfect 11-0 finish on Rocky Top marks the third time UT has wrapped up the regular season with 11 home wins.

"Any time you go undefeated at home, that is a special feeling," head coach Alison Ojeda said. "I know for a fact because I was on those teams in 2001 and 2002, our team was relentless back then. We were teams that we truly felt like this was our house and no one was going to come in and push us around. That was the mentality we had, it did not matter if we were playing against the defending national champions, we weren't going to let somebody beat us at home. There was pride in everything that we did when we put on the Orange and White."

"I can tell you right now, our team is playing with pride and passion. When they put on the Orange and White, it means something. When they put on the Lady Vol logo, they want to do the Lady Vols proud."

Head coach and LVFL Alison Ojeda was a member of both the 2001 and 2002 undefeated home squads while volunteer assistant coach and LVFL Caitlin Whoriskey was a member of the 2011 team. Assistant coach and VFL Jarryd Chaplin saw his freshman team in 2011 also go undefeated at home.

"The match as a whole I thought we went out with a ton of energy in doubles," Ojeda said. "Our goal was to focus on first-serve percentage and executing our returns. We knew that they were going to be all over the net so we would have to play a little more down the line than we would normally want to. We did an excellent job, especially at No. 1 and No. 2 I thought that we served well. Big points where we needed it and when we needed to execute, we did. If they won the point, it is because they earned it, not because we gave it to them."

After rain pushed competition indoors, UT won the doubles point in a split decision with wins on courts two and one.

Alabama (12-11, 3-10 SEC) claimed the first doubles win on court three, sophomore Carly Briggs and freshman Esther Adeshina immediately responded with a 6-4 win over Anne Marie Hiser and Sydney Riley on court two to win their fourth-straight SEC match as a pair.

Senior Tenika McGiffin and freshman Eleonora Molinaro clinched the point with a 6-4 win of their own over No. 49-ranked Moka Ito and Loudmilla Bencheikh on court one. The win gives them their third win as a duo and first over a ranked opponent.

In singles play UT went unscathed with wins on courts five, six and two.

"I thought the first 45 minutes of singles was phenomenal, easily the best singles our team has played on every court all across the board this season," Ojeda said.

McGiffin opened singles scoring as she cursed past Hiser on court five 6-1, 6-0. The senior finishes the 2021 regular season undefeated at home with a spotless 11-0 solo dual-match record. The Brisbane, Australia product holds an impressive 12-4 record this season.

Johanna Silva, the lone graduating senior honored during Senior Day, gave the Lady Vols a 3-0 advantage with a win on court six. The Hamburg, Germany product downed Riley in dominant straight-set (6-1, 6-1) fashion for her 85th-career win, placing her one solo victory outside UT's top-15 all-time list.

On court two, Molinaro provided the final margin of victory with a 6-1, 7-5 over Alba Cortina Pou. The freshman picked up her second Southeastern Conference win and third career win in dual-match play.

#16 University of Tennessee 4, #40 Alabama 0
Singles competition
1. #96 Rebeka Mertena (UT) vs. #94 Loudmilla Bencheikh (UA) 6-7 (4-7), 4-4, unfinished
2. #68 Eleonora Molinaro (UT) def. Alba Cortina Pou (UA) 6-1, 7-5
3. #45 Carly Briggs (UT) vs. Moka Ito (UA) 6-2, 4-6, 0-2, unfinished
4. Daria Kuczer (UT) vs. Anna Parkhomenko (UA) 6-1, 2-6, 1-1, unfinished
5. Tenika McGiffin (UT) def. Anne Marie Hiser (UA) 6-1, 6-0
6. Johanna Silva (UT) def. Sydney Riley (UA) 6-1, 6-1
Doubles competition
1. Tenika McGiffin/Eleonora Molinaro (UT) def. #49 Moka Ito/Loudmilla Bencheikh (UA) 6-4
2. Esther Adeshina/Carly Briggs (UT) def. Anne Marie Hiser/Sydney Riley (UA) 6-4
3. Alba Cortina Pou/Anna Parkhomenko (UA) def. Daria Kuczer/Kylie Duckworth (UT) 6-1
Match Notes:
Alabama 12-11, 3-10 SEC; National ranking #40
University of Tennessee 14-6, 8-4 SEC; National ranking #16
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,6,2)

FOLLOW THE LADY VOLS!
Fans can keep up with the latest Tennessee women's tennis news by following the program on its Facebook (Facebook.com/TennesseeWomensTennis), Twitter (@Vol_WTennis) and Instagram (Vol_WTennis) accounts.