University of Tennessee Athletics
Aulia and Britez Risso Advance to Doubles Final at ITA Regionals
October 20, 2025 | Women's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee women's tennis team Monday saw the duo of No. 17 Catherine Aulia and Leyla Britez Risso advance to the ITA Ohio Valley Regional doubles final.
The two seniors battled to a 4-4 score in the first set before settling into a groove. The duo did not drop another game, cruising to a 6-4, 6-0 straight-sets win over Vanderbilt's Pearce/Yamakita tandem. The Lady Vol pair will compete again tomorrow at 10 a.m. ET for the regional doubles title.
With a win, the two would earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Individual Championships in November at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Fla.
While they battled on court three, Tennessee's Francesca Mattioli and Maeve Thornton fought a three-set thriller on court two. The duo managed a first set win in tiebreak fashion, 7-6 [2], before losing momentum and falling behind 5-1 in the second. The two scraped back, bringing the score to 5-4, before ultimately losing the next and final game. Vanderbilt's No. 12 Mohr/Webster duo gained an early edge in the tiebreak set and maintained their lead to win 10-6.
In the singles semifinals, Britez Risso clashed with Vanderbilt's Mia Yamakita, ultimately falling in two sets. The two traded blows in the first and faced a tiebreaker, with Yamakita winning the battle to take the set, 7-6 [2]. She rode her momentum to a 6-1 win over the Lady Vol.
Tomorrow's doubles final will take place at 10 a.m. ET, with UT's winning pair meeting the Commodores' Mohr/Webster with the NCAA bid on the line. The two singles finalists, Yamakita and her teammate Bridgette Stammel, have elected not to play the regional final, as both have earned NCAA Championship singles bids with their semifinal wins.
ITA Regional Championships Information
The tournament presents an opportunity for two individual players and one doubles pair 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 sing les 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 Five)
Singles – Semifinals
Mia Yamakita (VU) def. No. 34 Leyla Britez Risso (UT) – 7-6 [2], 6-1
Doubles – Semifinals
No. 17 Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Pearce/Yamakita (VU) – 6-4, 6-0
No. 12 Mohr/Webster (VU) def. Mattioli/Thornton (UT) – 6-7 [2], 6-4, 10-6
The two seniors battled to a 4-4 score in the first set before settling into a groove. The duo did not drop another game, cruising to a 6-4, 6-0 straight-sets win over Vanderbilt's Pearce/Yamakita tandem. The Lady Vol pair will compete again tomorrow at 10 a.m. ET for the regional doubles title.
With a win, the two would earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Individual Championships in November at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Fla.
While they battled on court three, Tennessee's Francesca Mattioli and Maeve Thornton fought a three-set thriller on court two. The duo managed a first set win in tiebreak fashion, 7-6 [2], before losing momentum and falling behind 5-1 in the second. The two scraped back, bringing the score to 5-4, before ultimately losing the next and final game. Vanderbilt's No. 12 Mohr/Webster duo gained an early edge in the tiebreak set and maintained their lead to win 10-6.
In the singles semifinals, Britez Risso clashed with Vanderbilt's Mia Yamakita, ultimately falling in two sets. The two traded blows in the first and faced a tiebreaker, with Yamakita winning the battle to take the set, 7-6 [2]. She rode her momentum to a 6-1 win over the Lady Vol.
Tomorrow's doubles final will take place at 10 a.m. ET, with UT's winning pair meeting the Commodores' Mohr/Webster with the NCAA bid on the line. The two singles finalists, Yamakita and her teammate Bridgette Stammel, have elected not to play the regional final, as both have earned NCAA Championship singles bids with their semifinal wins.
ITA Regional Championships Information
The tournament presents an opportunity for two individual players and one doubles pair 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 sing les 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 Five)
Singles – Semifinals
Mia Yamakita (VU) def. No. 34 Leyla Britez Risso (UT) – 7-6 [2], 6-1
Doubles – Semifinals
No. 17 Aulia/Britez Risso (UT) def. Pearce/Yamakita (VU) – 6-4, 6-0
No. 12 Mohr/Webster (VU) def. Mattioli/Thornton (UT) – 6-7 [2], 6-4, 10-6
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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