The Ole Miss Men’s and Women’s Tennis teams begin SEC play for the 2024-25 season this weekend, Feb. 22-23.
Both teams will be on the road for their first matches. The men will travel to Fayetteville, Ark., to face Arkansas on Saturday, Feb. 22. The women will head south to Baton Rouge, La., to face LSU on Sunday, Feb. 23.
Men’s
Ole Miss will play in Arkansas against the Razorbacks, who are 10-3 on the season. Arkansas’ most recent action came in a double-header on Feb. 9, when they lost to Middle Tennessee State University 4-2 but beat Tennessee State 4-0.
Notably, the Razorbacks beat Nebraska 4-0 earlier this season. However, Arkansas has been inconsistent throughout the season; Middle Tennessee State is only 6-6, as is Tulsa. Overall, the Rebels look like the stronger team, and there is a chance they will catch the Razorbacks on an off day. Regardless, the Rebels need to come ready to play.
On Friday, Feb. 14, Nebraska dealt Ole Miss its first loss of the season. The Rebels responded well on Sunday, dominating Alcorn State in a double-header to improve to 9-1 on the season. This marked the Rebels’ best start to a season since 2021-22. The Rebels swept the Braves in all singles and doubles events.
Among the best performers for the Rebels were freshmen Matthieu Chambonniere and Benjamin Martin, both from France. The rookies won all three of their singles matches over the course of the weekend and were vital in keeping the matchup close against Nebraska.
Chambonniere leads the team in singles victories this season with 16. Additionally, Chambonniere and Martin won in doubles in both matches against Alcorn State.
Another excellent performer was freshman Kai Milburn from Queenstown, New Zealand. Milburn won four matches – two singles and two doubles – in the doubleheader against Alcorn State. The freshman doubled his collegiate singles win total from two to four.
Women’s
The Lady Rebels will face a daunting task against LSU, as the No. 16 Tigers are 8-1 this season — their sole loss coming against No. 7 Michigan at the ITA Division I National Women’s Team Indoor Championship on Feb. 7-9.
The women’s team had to scrape off the rust last weekend in their first match in more than two weeks. Though they lost to Iowa 1-4 on Sunday, Feb. 16, the Lady Rebels bounced back to defeat Alcorn State 7-0.
Sophomore Andrea Nova was a bright spot in the otherwise gloomy matchup against Iowa. The Prague native won 6-0 in doubles alongside senior Lucie Petruzelova and added a hard-earned singles victory that came after a tiebreaker in set two.
Nova also added doubles and singles victories against Alcorn State on Sunday. In her singles match, she did not lose a single game, winning 6-0 in sets one and two. Her doubles win, once again alongside Petruzelova, marked the pair’s fourth doubles victory of the season. Petruzelova, too, beat her opponent in singles.
LSU defeated No. 6 UCLA 4-2 in the consolation bracket of the ITA National Women’s Championship and left No. 3 Oklahoma State winless, earning a 4-0 victory. This was the highest-ranked win in the history of LSU women’s tennis.
Ole Miss faces a tall obstacle here. Nova’s performance last weekend was without blemish, but the Lady Rebels will need more than her to take down the red-hot Tigers.
If there is any coach in women’s tennis with enough experience to prepare a team for a fight like this, it is Ole Miss Coach Mark Bevers. Last weekend, Bevers achieved 300 career wins – all of which came at Ole Miss. Bevers undoubtedly knows how major an opportunity this is for his team, and he will ensure that they arrive in Baton Rouge equipped for a tough matchup.
