Fresh off of a win over fifth-ranked Southern California last Saturday at the ITA National Team Indoors, the 12th-ranked University of Kentucky women?s tennis team (7-3) faces another stiff challenge Saturday in ninth-ranked North Carolina (5-1). The Cats and Heels do battle beginning at 11 a.m. ET at UK?s Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex. Live scoring will be available at www.ukathletics.com.

Kentucky and North Carolina last met a season ago when the 25th-ranked Cats claimed a 4-3 victory over the seventh-ranked Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Cats return no one from the lineup used a year ago against UNC, while the Heels return all but one starter. Carolina boasts three student-athletes featured in the most recent ITA women?s tennis rankings: junior Aniela Mojzis at No. 34; freshman Sara Anundsen at No. 65 and freshman Caitlin Collins at No. 98. Mojzis teams up with junior Kendall Cline to form the ITA?s 41st-ranked doubles tandem.

Kentucky features only one ranked player in No. 23 Aibika Kalsarieva, but a rigorous fall schedule, coupled with a difficult dual-match schedule, has this youthful squad ready for another challenge. Kalsarieva and freshmen Sarah Foster and Lara Maurer enter the UNC match with two consecutive victories apiece.

The Cats are 4-3 against ranked opponents and 1-2 against top-10 foes. Kentucky owns a 12-2 advantage in its series against North Carolina. Saturday?s match marks Kentucky?s third in two weeks against an ACC opponent. No. 10 Duke defeated Kentucky by a 6-1 count on Saturday, Jan. 31 while the Cats turned away No. 75 Maryland, 4-3, on Sunday, Feb. 1. Kentucky and North Carolina each faced Harvard at last weekend?s ITA National Team Indoors; the Cats suffered a 4-3 defeat while the Tar Heels scored a 4-3 victory.