Ole Miss Tennis kicked off SEC play this past weekend against LSU and Texas A&M. Andrea Nova and Pietro Pampanin starred for the Rebels and stood out amongst both squads.
Nova, a junior from the Czech Republic, is in her third year with the Rebels. Against LSU, she took down her No. 96 ranked opponent Kinaa Graham 6-3, 6-3.
Nova also scored a win with her doubles partner Emily Welker. Welker and Nova are ranked No. 71 for women’s doubles pair in the country. The duo took down Kinaa Graham and Addison Lanton of LSU, 6-2.
Nova’s dominant performances were a key part of the team’s upset win over No. 4 LSU 5-2 on Sunday, Feb. 22.
Pietro Pampanin, a freshman from Trieste, Italy, had two huge wins against Texas A&M in his first-ever conference matches on Saturday, Feb. 21.
Pampanin’s first win of the weekend came with his doubles partner Stefano D’Agostino. The duo took down the Aggie pair, Kholo Montsi and Alex Frusin 7-5, the No. 61 doubles pair. This win clinched the doubles point for Ole Miss.
Pampanin defeated another ranked Aggie in the singles bracket in No. 108 Frusina 6-1, 6-3. This match was the first one to finish, and gave the Rebels an early 1-0 lead in the singles bracket.
Despite Pampanin’s outstanding performance, the No. 32 Rebels took their first loss of the season to the No. 16 Aggies, 4-3.
Pampanin also defeated Oklahoma Sooner Johan Rodriguez (6-4, 6-3) in the Rebels 4-3 loss on Monday, Feb. 23.
What’s next?
The women’s team will travel to Athens, Ga., for a match against the Georgia Bulldogs on Thursday, Feb. 26. The men’s team will host the Arkansas Razorbacks on Friday, Feb. 27 at 3 p.m.
