MIAMI, Fla. – The FIU women's tennis team gears up for an extremely competitive weekend in the Sunshine State, as the Panthers are slated to compete in the Coral Gables regional of the ITA Kickoff Weekend and face No. 10 Miami at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center on Saturday, Jan. 28.
Saturday, Jan. 28 at No. 10 Miami (1-0, 0-0 ACC)
The Panthers gear up for their first big tests of the young 2023 season, slated for a weekend of competition with nationally-ranked opponents in a field made up of host No. 10 Miami, No. 18 UCLA (1-0) and No. 24 Iowa State (2-1) – all programs who featured in last year's NCAA Tournament.
The matchup marks FIU's first against a top-10 opponent since facing No. 1 Florida in the Gainesville regional of ITA Kickoff Weekend in 2017.
FIU enters Saturday coming off a near two-week hiatus from competition after defeating Liberty in a neutral-site matchup to open the season, 4-3, on Jan. 15 in Fort Myers. The Panthers swept doubles action en route to ringing in three of the first four singles win to clinch the victory at 4-1.
Ekaterina Khairutdinova (No. 2),
Kamila Umarova (No. 3) and
Salma Loudili (No. 6) all notched singles victories for the Panthers, entering Saturday flawless.
A win for the Panthers would break a 22-year drought against the 'Canes, as FIU's last win over Miami came on Feb. 3, 2001, in Coral Gables, 5-2.
UP NEXT
Upon a win or loss, the Panthers will face the winner/loser of No. 18 UCLA and No. 24 Iowa State on Sunday, Jan. 29. Sunday's consolation match is slated for a 10 a.m. first serve, while the championship match is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Neil Schiff Tennis Center in Coral Gables, Fla.
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