UK Women’s Tennis Opens 2022 Season With Doubleheader Against ETSU on Friday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The 2022 season officially gets underway this weekend as the University of Kentucky women’s tennis team welcomes East Tennessee State to the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center on Friday, Jan. 14. The doubleheader between the Wildcats and Buccaneers will first start at 9 a.m. ET with the second match commencing two hours after the conclusion of match one.
Live scoring will be available here.
Admission to all home tennis matches will be free for the 2022 season. Capacity at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center is limited and will be based on a first come, first serve basis.
Regardless of an individual’s vaccination status, all fans, guests, and staff are required to wear a mask as they enter, exit, and move around the building. If spectators are unable to wear masks, they are encouraged to not attend matches in person for the sake of their health and the health of others.
Free parking options include the three small E-lots adjacent to the facility 90 minutes prior to the first match. Spectators may also pay to park in the Sports Center Garage (PS No. 7) on the corner of Complex Drive and Sports Center Drive. The cost of parking is $2 per hour with a $16 maximum.
Kentucky has a challenging schedule this year, which includes matchups with nine teams who either were ranked or received votes in the preseason ITA poll. The 2022 slate consists of 24 regular season matches with UK hosting 17 of those at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex.
The Wildcats return six players from last year’s roster, including All-American and All-SEC First Team selection Fiona Arrese. The program has also welcomed three newcomers this season in Ellie Eades, Lidia Gonzalez, and Florencia Urrutia.
UK posted a 16-9 overall mark with a 6-7 record in the Southeastern Conference during the 2021 campaign. Last season was one for the record books, as Arrese and Akvile Paražinskaite earned the No. 1 seed in the doubles draw for the NCAA Championships. The duo were the first Wildcats to be ranked No. 1 since 2016 and the first with Carlos Drada at the helm.
The 2021-22 season marks Drada’s 17th year as head coach and his 21st season overall in Lexington. Prior to the start of the fall season, the team welcomed Brad Merchant as the assistant coach. No stranger to UK, Merchant had served as the assistant strength and conditioning coach for Kentucky men’s basketball since 2019 and was the volunteer assistant for the women’s tennis team during the 2016-17 season.
The Wildcats saw action in four tournaments during the fall. Their most successful showing was at the ITA Regional Championships on Oct. 21-25 where they claimed 13 of the 20 singles matches and 11 of the 13 doubles matches. Carlota Molina and Elizabeth Stevens also advanced to the doubles main draw finals while competing in Murfreesboro.
Kentucky and East Tennessee State last faced each other in the season and home opener a year ago on Jan. 21, 2021. The Wildcats won all six singles matches played and both of the completed doubles matches en route to sweeping the Buccaneers, 7-0.
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s tennis program, follow @UKWomensTennis on Twitter and Instagram, on Facebook, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
