SMU
UCSB
Mustangs Ready for Away Match Against UC Santa Barbara | Wednesday, 3 p.m.
Mar 12 | Women's Tennis
No. 32 SMU at California Santa Barbara
Wednesday, March 13, 3 p.m. CT
Arnhold Tennis Center - Santa Barbara, California
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SETTING THE SCENE
No. 32 SMU will face UCSB on Tuesday. First serve is set for 3 p.m.
SMU is coming off of a 4-1 win over Rice on Saturday
The Mustangs won the American Athletic Conference Championship and earned an NCAA Tournament berth in 2023.
Six Mustangs - Hadley Doyle, Taylor Johnson, Maja Makoric, Lana Mavor, Drew Morris and Reka Patel Â- return from last season's roster.
SMU went 16-9 overall and 10-1 at home during 2023.
SMU enters its fifth season under the AAC's reigning Coach of the Year, Jeff Nevolo.
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KNOW THE FOES
California Santa Barbara is currently 5-7 for the 2023-24 season, most recently falling to then-No. 14 San Diego, 1-6.
The Gauchos opened the season with a 6-1 win on the road against San Francisco.
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SERIES HISTORY
The Mustangs will face UCSB for the sixth time in program history, most recently defeating the Gauchos 4-3 in 2018.
The Mustangs took on Santa Barbara for the first time in program history in 2000 with a 6-3 win on the road.
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SUCCESS UNDER NEVOLO
Jeff Nevolo is coming off of leading the Mustangs to their first AAC Championship, defeating UCF 4-0 in the finals.
The Mustangs were the first team in conference history to win all three tournament matches with 4-0 scores.
Nevolo was named the AAC Coach of the Year and mentored four Mustangs to All-Conference honors.
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FALLING INTO THE SPRING
SMU competed in six fall events, posting a total of 60 wins across singles and doubles play.
The Mustangs capped off the fall season by traveling to the Texas A&M Invitational to compete against some of the top ranked players in the country.
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IN THE RANKINGS
SMU has been mentioned in the International Tennis Association's (ITA) rankings five times so far this season.
As a team, the Mustangs come in currently ranked No. 32.
Doubles pair Taylor Johnson and Lana Mavor are currently the No. 27 ranked pair in the country.
For the March 5 rankings, Morris was ranked No. 118 in singles play.
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HAD ENOUGH YET?
Graduate student Hadley Doyle is the AAC's reigning Player of the Year.
She notched her first win in 2024 by defeating No. 75 Valeria Ray in singles play in SMU's home opener against No. 17 Vanderbilt.
Most recently against Rice, Doyle defeated Chie Kezuka in two sets (6-1, 6-1).
Prior to fall play this year, Doyle was listed on the ITA Division I Top 125 Preseason National Singles rankings, coming in at No. 63.
She is a three-time All-AAC selection and was selected as the AAC Player of the Week three times in 2023.
During her senior season, Doyle earned a team best 28-8 overall record.
Doyle went undefeated in the 2023 AAC Championship, finishing 2-0 in singles and 3-0 in doubles.
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LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO
On the road against No. 15 Duke, Johnson defeated then-No. 65 Shavit Kimchi on court one in Durham.
As a result of going 5-0 at the time, Taylor Johnson was awarded the AAC Women's Tennis Player of the Week on Feb. 27.
For the 2022-23 year - her debut season as a Mustang - Johnson posted a 23-8 overall singles record and a 13-4 dual match record.
She ended last season on a 10-match win streak including a straight set victory in the NCAA first round match up against Baylor.
Johnson was an ITA Indoors All-Tournament selection (doubles No. 3 - 2021)
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2022-23 RECAP
The Mustangs won their first AAC Championship in 2023 and competed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
SMU earned a 16-9 overall record and defeated each of their conference opponents.
The Mustangs recorded 11 total sweeps and seven ranked wins. SMU finished No. 32 in the final ITA poll.
In recognition of their success, Jeff Nevolo was named the AAC Coach of the Year and Hadley Doyle was named the AAC Player of the Year, as well as Doyle, Taylor Johnson and Drew Morris who were awarded four combined All-Conference honors.
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WANT SOME MORR-IS?
Drew Morris will be entering her junior season for the Mustangs and is currently the No. 118 player in the country.
Against No. 17 Vanderbilt on Jan. 21, she decided the match with her three set thriller against No. 24 Bridget Stammel.
She won the first set 7-5 and the third 7-6.
As a result of her win, she earned AAC Player of the Week honors, as announced by the league on Tuesday.
She is coming off of a 2023 in which she was placed on the AAC All-Conference Team and was a two-time AAC Player of the Week..
At this fall's ITA Texas Regional, Morris won every match she competed in.
Her mother, Tammy Christensen, played for SMU women's tennis from 1984-1988.
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FRESH FACES
SMU added two freshman - Caroline McGinley and Millie Skelton Â- as the Mustangs announced their signing class in July.
McGinley, hailing to the Hilltop from New Jersey, was the No. 2 ranked player in all of her home state and was ranked in the national top 50 of 2023 recruits.
Against Duke, McGinley defeated then-No. 78 Karolina Berankova in two sets.
Great Britain native Millie Skelton is the other remaining new face on the Mustangs' roster
Skelton held a junior ITF ranking of 536 with a career-high ranking of 271.
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FRESHMAN CLINCHER
Against Wichita State, LSU and TAMUCC, McGinley secured the Mustangs' s win by earning the final point of the matches.
She defeated LSU's Kenna Ericksonin three sets (6-2, 5-7, 6-4), Wichita State's Giorgia Roselli, (7-6, 6-4) and the Islanders' Victorie Delattre (6-0, 4-6, 6-1).
Overall, the freshman and New Jersey native is 12-9 on the season and 1-1 against nationally ranked opponents.
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ALL AROUND THE WORLD
Taylor Johnson traveled to Chenjdu, China to compete in the 2023 World University Games.
Johnson (6-0, 6-0) later advanced to the third round of play for her final round of competition.
"It was such an amazing experience to represent Team USA on such a big stage," said Johnson. "Competing for your country is one of the most special things you can do as an athlete, and I will forever cherish these moments."
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DALLAS OPEN
On Saturday, Feb. 3, Taylor Johnson and Drew Morris participated in the Dallas Open's Women's Tennis Classic with professionals Genie Bouchard and Caroline Wozniacki.
Morris paired with Wozniacki and Johnson teamed up with Bouchard in front of an eager crowd.
Johnson and Bouchard won the match, 7-5.
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LOOKING AHEAD
The Mustangs will face off against one remaining team that is currently ranked in the top 25 by ITA -Â No. 10 Texas.
SMU will play a total of two more home matches at the Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex in the spring, excluding the American Athletic Conference Championship.
The Mustangs will face five AAC opponents - Rice, Charlotte, USF, Tulsa and Memphis.
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UP NEXT
Following play against UC Santa Barbara, the Mustangs will continue their road stretch to take on San Diego. First serve is set for 12:00 p.m. on Friday.
