University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Ryan Beatty/Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Collect 11 wins on day 3 at ITA Regionals
October 18, 2025 | Women's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee women's tennis team Saturday collected 11 wins across singles and doubles competition at the ITA Ohio Valley Regional. The Lady Vols saw two doubles pairs advance to the quarterfinals, and six singles entries advance to the round of 16.
The Lady Vols' three doubles entries all survived the round of 32 via swift 8-2 sets. Tennessee's tandem of Catherine Aulia and Leyla Britez Risso, the No. 17 duo in the nation, went on to face Louisville's Gallegos/Noguero, and deliver a flawless 8-0 showing in the round of 16.
Francesca Mattioli and Maeve Thornton also advanced to the quarterfinals, working a hard-fought 8-6 set win over DeFord/Rexroat of Xavier.
In the afternoon, singles competition held more success for the Lady Vols, with six competitors earning wins and advancing to the Round of 16.
Mattioli put together the team's most dominant day, earning 8-2 and 8-6 wins in doubles alongside Thornton, and staying hot to take her singles match with a 6-1, 7-6 [7] score.
Elim Yan continued her excellent Fall season, picking up a 6-3, 7-6 [7] win over Cincinnati's Sara Watanabe. She moves to 6-1 in singles competition this year.
Aulia and Britez Risso, having already collected two doubles wins in the morning session, struggled out of the gate in their singles matches, dropping their first sets 7-5 and 6-3, respectively. However, both fought back to win their matches in three sets.
The quarterfinals of doubles competition is slated for 9:00 a.m. ET Sunday. The singles round of 16 will follow, with times and court assignments not yet established. Check the ITA Ohio Valley Regional tournament homepage for schedule details and results.
ITA Regional Championships Information
The tournament presents an opportunity for two individual players, and one doubles pairing to earn automatic qualifications for the NCAA Individual Championships in November.
Each of the 2025 ITA Men's and Women's Division I Regional Championships will have a draw size of at least 64 in the singles qualifying draw and 64 in the singles main draw. The doubles field stands at a minimum of 32 in both the qualifying and main draws.
From these fields, the two singles finalists from each region (26 total players) will qualify for the NCAA Singles Championship. Meanwhile, the doubles champion from each region (13 total entries) will qualify for the NCAA Doubles Championship.
For more information about the ITA Regional Championships, click HERE. For more information on the Ohio Valley Regional in Knoxville, click HERE. Click the following links for Live Stats, Live Streams, and directions to the Barksdale Tennis Stadium. All UT home tennis events are free to attend, and all seating is general admission.
ITA Ohio Valley Regionals – Lady Vols Results (Day One)
Doubles – Round of 32
Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Kholdrova/Peyer (MTSU) – 8-2
Mattioli/Thornton (UT) def. Pedretti/Presson (UTC) – 8-2
Suarez/Yli-Piipari (UT) def. Chaphalkar/Rodrigues De Lima (MTSU) – 8-2
Doubles – Round of 16
Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Gallegos/Noguero (Louisville) – 8-0
Mattioli/Thornton (UT) def. DeFord/Rexroat (Xavier) – 8-6
Kolyszko/Wilson (Purdue) def. Suarez/Yli-Piipari (UT) – 8-3
Singles – Round of 32
Catherine Aulia (UT) def. Addison Iacono (UTC) – 5-7, 6-2, 6-3
Leyla Britez Risso (UT) def. Ece Gencer (Purdue) – 3-6, 6-2, 6-0
Francesca Mattioli (UT) def. Hiilani Williams (Indiana) – 6-1, 7-6 [1]
Erin Pearce (VU) def. Maeve Thornton (UT) – 6-1, 6-3
Vanesa Suarez (UT) def. Sasha Parkhomenko (EKU) – 6-2, 6-0
Elim Yan (UT) def. Sara Watanabe (Cincinnati) – 6-3, 7-6 [7]
Saray Yli-Piipari (UT) def. Elizabeth Dunac (Indiana) – 6-3, 6-7 [6], 6-0
The Lady Vols' three doubles entries all survived the round of 32 via swift 8-2 sets. Tennessee's tandem of Catherine Aulia and Leyla Britez Risso, the No. 17 duo in the nation, went on to face Louisville's Gallegos/Noguero, and deliver a flawless 8-0 showing in the round of 16.
Francesca Mattioli and Maeve Thornton also advanced to the quarterfinals, working a hard-fought 8-6 set win over DeFord/Rexroat of Xavier.
In the afternoon, singles competition held more success for the Lady Vols, with six competitors earning wins and advancing to the Round of 16.
Mattioli put together the team's most dominant day, earning 8-2 and 8-6 wins in doubles alongside Thornton, and staying hot to take her singles match with a 6-1, 7-6 [7] score.
Elim Yan continued her excellent Fall season, picking up a 6-3, 7-6 [7] win over Cincinnati's Sara Watanabe. She moves to 6-1 in singles competition this year.
Aulia and Britez Risso, having already collected two doubles wins in the morning session, struggled out of the gate in their singles matches, dropping their first sets 7-5 and 6-3, respectively. However, both fought back to win their matches in three sets.
The quarterfinals of doubles competition is slated for 9:00 a.m. ET Sunday. The singles round of 16 will follow, with times and court assignments not yet established. Check the ITA Ohio Valley Regional tournament homepage for schedule details and results.
ITA Regional Championships Information
The tournament presents an opportunity for two individual players, and one doubles pairing to earn automatic qualifications for the NCAA Individual Championships in November.
Each of the 2025 ITA Men's and Women's Division I Regional Championships will have a draw size of at least 64 in the singles qualifying draw and 64 in the singles main draw. The doubles field stands at a minimum of 32 in both the qualifying and main draws.
From these fields, the two singles finalists from each region (26 total players) will qualify for the NCAA Singles Championship. Meanwhile, the doubles champion from each region (13 total entries) will qualify for the NCAA Doubles Championship.
For more information about the ITA Regional Championships, click HERE. For more information on the Ohio Valley Regional in Knoxville, click HERE. Click the following links for Live Stats, Live Streams, and directions to the Barksdale Tennis Stadium. All UT home tennis events are free to attend, and all seating is general admission.
ITA Ohio Valley Regionals – Lady Vols Results (Day One)
Doubles – Round of 32
Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Kholdrova/Peyer (MTSU) – 8-2
Mattioli/Thornton (UT) def. Pedretti/Presson (UTC) – 8-2
Suarez/Yli-Piipari (UT) def. Chaphalkar/Rodrigues De Lima (MTSU) – 8-2
Doubles – Round of 16
Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Gallegos/Noguero (Louisville) – 8-0
Mattioli/Thornton (UT) def. DeFord/Rexroat (Xavier) – 8-6
Kolyszko/Wilson (Purdue) def. Suarez/Yli-Piipari (UT) – 8-3
Singles – Round of 32
Catherine Aulia (UT) def. Addison Iacono (UTC) – 5-7, 6-2, 6-3
Leyla Britez Risso (UT) def. Ece Gencer (Purdue) – 3-6, 6-2, 6-0
Francesca Mattioli (UT) def. Hiilani Williams (Indiana) – 6-1, 7-6 [1]
Erin Pearce (VU) def. Maeve Thornton (UT) – 6-1, 6-3
Vanesa Suarez (UT) def. Sasha Parkhomenko (EKU) – 6-2, 6-0
Elim Yan (UT) def. Sara Watanabe (Cincinnati) – 6-3, 7-6 [7]
Saray Yli-Piipari (UT) def. Elizabeth Dunac (Indiana) – 6-3, 6-7 [6], 6-0
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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