Upsets galore in college tennis — ITA National Indoors preview
By Joey Dillon
The IX: Tennis Tuesday with Joey Dillon, Feb. 4, 2025
Howdy, y’all and Happy Tennis Tuesday! If you’re a college tennis fan, there was certainly no post-Australian Open hangover for you! This week, the ITA Division I Women’s National Team Indoor event will take place in Illinois with Northwestern University and the University of Illinois acting as hosts. While the draws haven’t been released yet, the two host sites have unveiled the teams playing that will advance to the semifinals and finals at Northwestern this weekend. With three Top 5 upsets this past weekend, it will be very interesting to see how things unfold.
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Host: Northwestern University
Teams:
– No. 1 Georgia
– No. 4 Stanford
– No. 5 Virginia
– No. 8 North Carolina
– No. 10 Auburn
– No. 13 Tennessee
– No. 15 Pepperdine
– Northwestern
Of the two sites, this is definitely the one I would tell you to attend if you had to choose. In last week’s ITA rankings, Georgia continues to lead the pack and has NCAA singles champion Dasha Vidmanova headlining the Bulldogs. However, this weekend saw them play against indoor queens North Carolina with the Tar Heels accomplishing a 4-3 upset thanks to Reese Brantmeier’s three-set epic over Vidmanova at No. 1 singles. UNC has won six ITA Indoor titles since 2015 and currently have three players ranked in the Top 25. They’re certainly the wildcards to go all the way.
Another team I’m certainly curious on how they’ll fare is the Stanford Cardinal. While they have No. 6 Valerie Glozman and No. 12 Connie Ma at the top two slots, they didn’t look super sharp in their ITA Indoor Kickoff victory against Ole Miss. Senior All-American Alexandra Yepifanova hasn’t played a match all year and it was recently announced that both Alexis Blokhina and India Houghton decided to turn pro after the fall season and not return, so they might struggle against the elite and seasoned teams. Auburn, with NCAA runner-up DJ Bennett topping their lineup, is also one to watch as they had a big win over the weekend against Oklahoma State with an impressive 4-0 scoreline.
Host: University of Illinois
Teams:
– No. 2 Texas A&M
– No. 3 Oklahoma State
– No. 6 UCLA
– No. 7 Michigan
– No. 11 Texas
– No. 12 Oklahoma
– No. 16 LSU
– Illinois
Oklahoma State may be the defending Indoor champions, but their loss to Auburn might be a bit of a warning sign that the history-making season they produced last year might produce a sophomore slump. Texas A&M won last year’s NCAA tournament and have only dropped one dual match point in their five victories, so they could cruise into the final weekend with the right draw. Of this site, Oklahoma is the darkhorse in my opinion. Super well-coached by Audra Cohen, the Sooners enjoy playing indoors and look to recreate the magic that took them to the championship match in 2022.
Michigan is a program that is consistently a great, Top 10-15 team but usually lacks the X-factor to lead them to full glory. While they might not have the deepest talent pool, they can produce an upset, highlighted in their 4-2 scalp over Virginia. I would plug in UCLA as a team to watch, but their ITA Kickoff was cut to one match because teams couldn’t travel due to the wildfires going on and they won’t be as match-ready as the other teams.
The tournament will have one round per day, with normal collegiate scoring procedures in place. The doubles point will be played first. There, three doubles matches — one set to six, no-ad scoring — will take place. Once a team has won two of those, the point is complete and the singles matches will begin right after. Six singles matches, one point each, of normal two-out-of-three sets with no-ad scoring will determine the dual match’s winner. Once a school has produced four points (one doubles and three singles or four singles), the remaining courts will be abandoned.
What I appreciate about Indoors is that it isn’t a one-and-done situation. Each team is guaranteed three matches, with loser’s consolation duals happening during the weekend, too. Getting three Top 20 matches in a weekend will test the programs looking to dominate the rest of the season in hopes of capturing the team NCAA tournament. Again, it’s still hard to pick how the tournament will unfold but I think it’s likely that Georgia will emerge as champions, but UNC would probably be my second pick. If a team from the Illinois section were to come through all of the way, I would say Texas A&M is your best bet but the Northwestern section is just stacked.
Before I leave you to read the weekly links, my must-read is actually a must-watch by UNC’s Hussman School of Journalism about the program’s first team title in 2023:
Now, on to links!
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This Week in Women’s Tennis
Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova will be returning to the tour later this month following her maternity leave!
Two-time runner-up Ekaterina Alexandrova finally won the Upper Austria Ladies Linz with a three-set battle over Dayana Yastremska. The doubles title was won by Timea Babos and Luisa Stefani who came back against Nadiia Kichenok and Lyudmyla Kichenok. Be sure to also check out Alexandrova’s Champion’s Corner with WTA Insider.
Elise Mertens made her second final of the year already, but won her first title of 2025 at the Singapore Tennis Open with a two-setter over Ann Li. In doubles, Desirae Krawczyk and Giuliana Olmos of Mexico ousted Wang Xinyu and Zheng Saisai.
The Professional Tennis Players Association, with the help of Tara Moore, has launched a pro bono legal aide program for players who face doping or anti-corruption charges:
Jamea Jackson had to retire young because of hip injuries, but a one-way ticket to Oklahoma eventually led the former Top 50 pro to head the Arizona State program.
Y’all. Just watch women’s doubles!
David Kane spoke to Anastasia Potapova, who opened up about her recent divorce and her hopes to have a brighter 2025 on and off of the court.
Congratulations to 2016 Olympic gold medalist Monica Puig, who is expecting her first child with husband Nathan Rakitt. What a last name for a tennis baby.
In the land of NIL, Anna Frey might be the big name college tennis needs:
Paula Badosa nearly walked away from the sport because of a debilitating back injury, but a year later she’s finding some of her career-best form.
The U.S. Open will officially be adding a 15th day of competition, now beginning on a Sunday starting this year.
Destanee Aiava might be onto something here….
Fortunately, Pam Shriver’s stolen Grand Slam trophies were found and returned to the Hall of Famer.
Victoria Azarenka visited her son’s class and the joy she got from the kids will make you smile. My show-and-tell was never that cool.
Madison Keys appeared on CBS after her Grand Slam breakthrough Down Under:
Danielle Collins said she would use the big, fat Australian Open paycheck on a five-star vacation and she’s already delivered on that promise.
In coaching news, Elena Rybakina has added a different former ATP pro in Davide Sanguinetti:
From panels to the Legends Cup, many former greats were in attendance to celebrate and be celebrated at the Australian Open.
| Mondays: Soccer |
| By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer |
| Tuesdays: Tennis |
| By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer |
| Wednesdays: Basketball |
| By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The Next |
| Thursdays: Golf |
| By: Marin Dremock, @MDremock, The IX |
| Fridays: Hockey |
| By: @TheIceGarden, The Ice Garden |
| Saturdays: Gymnastics |
| By: Lela Moore, @runlelarun, Freelance Writer |
Tweet of the Week
Period.
| Mondays: Soccer |
| By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer |
| Tuesdays: Tennis |
| By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer |
| Wednesdays: Basketball |
| By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The Next |
| Thursdays: Golf |
| By: Marin Dremock, @MDremock, The IX |
| Fridays: Hockey |
| By: @TheIceGarden, The Ice Garden |
| Saturdays: Gymnastics |
| By: Lela Moore, @runlelarun, Freelance Writer |
