No. 25 Baylor WT Opens Spring Slate at Tennessee’s Lady Vols Invite

[Pirtle, Colin]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Jan. 8, 2026

No. 25 Baylor WT Opens Spring Slate at Tennessee’s Lady Vols Invite
Bears open play in doubles on Friday morning
For more information contact: Colin Pirtle; 940-564-0351, colin_pirtle1 at baylor.edu<mailto:colin_pirtle1 at baylor.edu>


KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Baylor women’s tennis is poised to open the season at the University of Tennessee’s Lady Vols Invite, beginning Friday morning, at the Goodfriend Tennis Center.



First serve of the spring-opening hidden dual tournament is scheduled for 7 a.m. Friday, when the Bears face Vanderbilt in doubles competition before returning to finish the day against Tennessee in singles at 11:30 a.m.



Saturday begins against Vanderbilt in singles play at 9 a.m. and concludes with a noon bout against the Arizona State doubles duos.



The Bears and the Sun Devils face off again in singles at 8 a.m. on Sunday, and the tournament closes against Tennessee in doubles shortly after at 10:30 a.m.



Head coach Joey Scrivano will roll out his new-look roster featuring six newcomers: freshmen Luna Ivkovic, Neda Rahimkhani, Mu-Jie Tzeng, Rioko Umekuni and Gabrielle Villegas, and sophomore Alian Zack, a transfer from Oklahoma State.



A combined 63 singles and 36 doubles victories return to the court in the green and gold this season, led by senior Na Dong's 26 singles victories. Dong was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year after posting an undefeated 7-0 singles record in conference play.



Junior Zuzanna Kubacha and senior Kennedy Gibbs won 19 and 17 singles matches last season, respectively, helping the Bears to a 20-6 overall record. Junior Lindsay Patton, who had a pair of appearances in fall play, also returns.



The 2025 fall slate culminated in Dong and Kubacha's appearance in both the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships in Florida, where Dong defeated the No. 1 overall seed. Both Bears advanced through the first round of singles play.



The Bears return to the Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center for their home opener on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 3 p.m. CT, against Illinois. The match is featured in a tennis triple-header as the Baylor men’s team hosts Lamar twice at noon and 6 p.m.



Live scoring<https://www.sidearmstats.com/utennessee/mten/> and live video<https://web.playsight.com/facility/uniersity-of-tennessee/home> for the Lady Vols Invite is available online with the tournament homepage<https://colleges.wearecollegetennis.com/Competitions/UnivOfTennesseeKnoxvilleW/Tournaments/Overview/28f67ee8-9f08-4ed8-bf42-d9e4823c1e11> provided by the ITA.



To stay up to date, follow the team on its official Facebook, X and Instagram accounts: @BaylorWTennis.



 - BaylorBears.com –


Lady Vols Invite – Baylor Schedule (times listed CT)
Friday 1/9
7 a.m. – Doubles vs. Vanderbilt
11:30 a.m. – Singles vs. Tennessee

Saturday 1/10
9 a.m. – Singles vs. Vanderbilt
12 p.m. – Doubles vs. Arizona State

Sunday 1/11
8 a.m. – Singles vs. Arizona State
10:30 a.m. – Doubles vs. Tennessee





_________________________________________

Colin Pirtle | Associate Director of Athletics Communications (WBB, Soccer, W. Tennis)

Department of Athletics | Baylor University

C: 940-564-0351



[signature_2230589939]<http://baylorbears.com/>


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