Originally published on KBTX on January 10, 2024
BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – On the heels of their back-to-back SEC regular season championships, Texas A&M women’s tennis looks to continue its success on the highest stages.
The No. 2 Aggies enter their spring campaign guided by 2023 SEC Co-Coach of the year Mark Weaver, back-to-back Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Assistant Coach of the Year Jordan Szabo and new assistant coach Taylor Rodgers.
‘22-’23 In Review
Texas A&M started the 2022-23 season ranked No. 5 in the ITA preseason rankings and were projected to finish first in the SEC following their double title winning performance from the previous year. The Maroon & White posted a 30-3 overall record, going 25-1 in the regular season and 13-0 in SEC regular season play.
In the SEC Tournament, the Aggies beat Vanderbilt (4-1) and Florida (4-2), sending them to their third straight championship match. A&M came up just short, falling to Georgia in the finals (4-2).
Entering the NCAA Tournament, the Maroon & White earned the highest ranking in the conference as the No. 2 seed. Texas A&M topped Quinnipiac (4-0) in the opening round and went on to beat Baylor (4-0) to head to their fourth straight Sweet 16. The Aggies downed the Volunteers (4-1), ensuring their second straight Elite Eight run.
Texas A&M’s impressive season came to an end in Orlando with a loss to No. 7 Stanford in the quarterfinals. The Cardinal quickly found four points to take the match despite A&M’s efforts on the remaining courts.
Mary Stoiana and Carson Branstine earned ITA All-America accolades. Stoiana garnered honors in both singles and doubles, while Branstine was awarded All-America status for her play with Stoiana. The duo’s record stood undefeated at 9-0 until injury ended Branstine’s season. Stoiana finished her individual season with 38 wins and the program’s highest ranking at No. 2.
‘23-’24 Fall Highlights
Heading into the fall, Texas A&M was named the USTA 2023 Best of Texas Women’s College Team following their successful season. The Aggies were quick to get back to work and did so at the North Carolina State Fall Ranked Spotlight Invitational. Mia Kupres and Stoiana took home the doubles titles beating three ranked teams for the trophy. Texas transfer, Nicole Khirin and Daria Smetannikov debuted their partnership taking down a ranked pair on the weekend. Each Aggie competed in singles play, with Stoiana leading the group with four ranked wins.
The star of the fall, Stoiana, made history as the first Aggie to win the ITA All-American Championship. She took down the No. 3 seed Alexa Noel for the crown on top of her other four ranked wins. Stoiana and partner Kupres added three ranked wins to their record, as they were knocked out in the semifinals.
The Maroon & White secured both singles and doubles titles at the Texas A&M Invitational. Smetannikov claimed co-champion with a 2-1 record on the weekend. New Aggie Sydney Fitch and Gianna Pielet were the outright doubles champions after a 3-0 performance at the invitational. The remaining squad consisting of Ellie Pittman, Lizanne Boyer, Avery Esquivel, Kayal Gownder, Elise Robbins and Jeanette Mireles went 9-2 in doubles play and 19-3 in singles.
Stoiana was the first Aggie in program history to be named No. 1 in the ITA rankings just before being invited to compete for Team USA at the Master’U BNP Paribas. The team went 17-1 in Honfleur, France, winning their fourth-straight gold medal. Stoiana was a spectacular 4-0 in her matches and securing Team USA’s first point in the championship round.
Meet the Aggies
Lucciana Perez – Freshman – Lima, Peru/ICL Academy
– No. 3 Junior World Ranking
– Eight ITF junior singles titles
– 11 ITF junior doubles titles
– Current No. 3 ITA Newcomer
– Named to the junior and senior Peruvian Billie Jean King Cup Teams
Lizanne Boyer – Sophomore – Dallas, Texas / Highland Park
– ITA All-Academic Team
– SEC All-Academic Honor Roll
– 3-0 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Mireles/Robbins/Pittman)
– 3-0 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Avery Esquivel – Sophomore – Austin, Texas / Vandegrift
– ITA All-Academic Team
– SEC All-Academic Honor Roll
– 2-0 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Nicole Khirin – Sophomore – Rishon LeZion, Israel/ Texas
– Current ITA singles ranking No. 31
– 2023 Big 12 Player of the Year
– 2023 Big 12 Freshman of the Year
– All-Big 12 Singles First Team
– Big 12 All-Freshman Team
– Big 12 All-Tournament Team
Mia Kupres – Sophomore – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
– Current ITA singles ranking No. 26
– Current ITA doubles ranking No. 3 (Stoiana)
– NC State Invitational doubles champion (Stoiana)
– All-SEC Second Team
– All-SEC Freshman Team
– 5x SEC Freshman of the Week (2023)
Daria Smetannikov – Sophomore – Marlboro, New Jersey / Red Bank Catholic
– Collected a record of 19-9 in singles and 14-7 in dual match play (2022-23)
– 2-1 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
– 2-1 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Mireles/Gownder/Pittman)
Ellie Pittman – Junior – Indianapolis, Indiana/ Heritage Christian
– 2-0 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Boyer/Mireles/Smetannikov)
– 3-0 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Kayal Gownder – Junior – Cypress, Texas / Cy-Fair
– SEC Academic Honor Roll
– ITA All-Academic Team
– 2-0 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Robbins/Smetannikov)
– 3-0 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Jeanette Mireles – Junior – Houston, Texas / Connections Academy
– Compiled a 22-6 overall singles record and 14-4 ledger in dual match play (2022-23)
– 2-1 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Boyer/Pittman/Smetannikov)
– 2-1 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Gianna Pielet – Junior – El Paso, Texas / Connections Academy
– 3-0 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Fitch)
– 2-1 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Mary Stoiana – Junior – Southbury, Connecticut / K12 Private Academy
– Current ITA singles ranking No. 1
– Current ITA doubles ranking No. 3 (Kupres)
– ITA All-American Singles Champion (2023)
– ITA All-American singles & doubles
– ITA All-Academic Team
– CSC Academic All-America
– CWSA Honda Award Finalist
– SEC Player of the Year 2023
Elise Robbins – Senior – Austin, Texas / Regents School of Austin
– ITA All-Academic Team
– SEC All-Academic Honor Roll
– 2-1 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Boyer/Gownder/Esquivel)
– 2-0 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Sydney Fitch – Graduate – San Antonio, Texas/ Laurel Springs
– 3-0 in doubles at Texas A&M Invitational (Pielet)
– 2-1 in singles at Texas A&M Invitational
Previewing the Schedule
The Maroon & White head to San Diego, California, to open their season versus the Toreros and Stanford Jan. 13-14. respectively.
The Aggies return home for a doubleheader against Harvard and Abilene Christian Jan. 20, before hosting the ITA Kickoff Weekend with hopes of punching its ticket to the ITA National Indoor Championships which take place Feb. 9-12.
The Maroon & White open their kickoff weekend against Northwestern Jan. 27 with the winner playing TCU or Rice the following day.
The Aggies then shift their focus to Coral Gables, Florida, for the return match of a home-and-home with Miami Feb. 2.
The Maroon & White wrap up the non-conference slate with home matches against Rice (Feb. 18) and SMU (Feb. 27) sandwiched around a road trip to face Baylor February 25.
SEC Play
Conference play begins at home versus South Carolina (March 1) and Florida (March 3).
The Maroon & White hit the road for four straight matches starting with Mississippi State (March 8) and Ole Miss (March 10). The following week the travel to Georgia (March 15) and Tennessee (March 17).
The Aggies return to the Brazos Valley to host Vanderbilt (March 22) and Kentucky (March 24).
The Maroon & White head back on the road for a trio of matches, including LSU (March 29), Missouri (April 5) and Arkansas (April 7).
The Aggies conclude SEC regular season play at home versus Auburn (April 12) and Alabama (April 14).
SEC Tournament
The SEC Tournament will be held April 17-21 in Athens, Georgia, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
NCAA Tournament
The first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament are booked for May 3-5 and the Super Regional takes round is slated for May 10-12. The first three rounds are held at campus sites. The NCAA Championship is scheduled for May 16-25 at the Greenwood Tennis Center in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
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