University of Tennessee Athletics

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 14 University of Tennessee women's tennis team (7-1, 3-0) handed the No. 28 Alabama Crimson Tide (10-1, 2-1) its first loss of the season Saturday, posting a 4-0 victory at the Alabama Tennis Stadium in Tuscaloosa.

The Lady Vols claimed the doubles point and singles wins on courts two, three and six to earn the sweep.

In doubles play, sisters Audrey Aulia and Catherine Aulia competed for Tennessee as a duo for the first time, registering a 6-1 win on court three. They became the first sisters to compete together in doubles since Paula and Peta Kelly did so last in 1982.

"Being able to play with Catherine gave me a lot of confidence going into my first doubles match," the junior Aulia said. "We haven't played a lot together because of our age gap, so I'm glad that we got to experience this opportunity. We had so much fun out there and knew what we wanted to do to get the win!"

Tennessee's duo of Francesca Mattioli and Vanesa Suarez sealed the doubles point with a 6-4 set win on court one. It was the duo's first time competing on court one this season for the Big Orange, having spent the prior seven matches manning court two.

"We've been talking to our team about the ability to stay flexible for years now, so it's a part of who we are on a day-to-day basis," Tennessee head coach Alison Ojeda said of her reworked doubles assignments. "For that reason, it was easy to make the adjustment. Our team was so mature about understanding what we did. That said, they performed really well as well!"

Armed with a 1-0 lead in the dual, five Lady Vols earned first set wins to open singles play. Tennessee would earn it's next point from court six, where Audrey Aulia picked up her first collegiate singles win. She logged a 6-2, 6-4 win over Alabama's Amina Salibayeva.

"People overestimate the difference between college tennis, junior tennis and pro tennis," Ojeda remarked when asked about her freshman. "It's hard to come into a team where everybody's counting on each other and instantly feel this camaraderie that allows you to want to compete harder than you've ever competed in your life for each other. Audrey did exactly that to close out this match the way she did and I'm excited for her."

Following the win on court six, the next to finish for Tennessee was senior Vanesa Suarez on court two. In her first set, she battled to a 7-6 (3) tiebreak win over Alabama's Klara Milicevic. She then tallied 6-4 win of the second to earn her second win in as many matches.

No. 25 Leyla Britez Risso, the lone Lady Vol to drop her first set, would fight her way back into contention with a 6-4 win of the second. She ultimately won her match on court three by a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 tally, remaining undefeated in 2026 and collecting her seventh-consecutive win in dual play. Her win handed Tennessee its second sweep of the conference slate.

"It was a tough match today for me mentally," Britez Risso said following her performance. "I was struggling to find rhythm in the first set and my opponent was playing well. It was one of those days that I knew I had to be out there as long as I could and try to find a way to win the match even if my best tennis was not there, and that's what I did."

"Anyone who knows Leyla knows that she's never out of a match until she shakes hands with her opponent," Ojeda said. "She's a gutsy tennis player for that exact reason and I'm so proud of the way she has developed into who she is."

Tennessee returns to action Friday, March 6 for a matchup with No. 11 Oklahoma at Barksdale Stadium in Knoxville. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.

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