LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas women’s tennis opened its 2024 campaign by hosting the Duel in the Desert in Indian Wells, California, in which the Jayhawks competed against Iowa State, Clemson and Arkansas.
The Duel in the Desert featured a hidden dual format, in which the Jayhawks faced off against each team in singles and doubles. Kansas opened the tournament on Thursday against Clemson.
Action got started with doubles, as Kansas took one of three matches. The duo of Jocelyn Massey and Kyoka Kubo defeated Clemson’s Leigh Van Zyl and Cristina Mayorova, 7-5. The Kansas duo would go undefeated on the weekend, winning against Iowa State’s Juliette Nask and Ashlee Narker, 6-4, and Arkansas’ Lenka Stara and Grace O’Donnell, 6-0.
In singles against Clemson, Kansas gained wins in three matches, as Gracie Mulville defeated Clemson’s Eleni Louka, 6-3, 6-0, Kubo defeated Sophia Hatton, 7-5, 6-1 and Silvia Marie Costache battled with Van Zyl in three sets, 2-6, 7-5, 7-5.
Against Iowa State, Kansas claimed two out of three doubles matches, as Costache and Maria Titova paired up for a 6-1 victory over the Cyclones’ Gala Arangio and Valeska San Martin Ramirez, 6-1.
In singles, Kansas won four matches against Iowa State as Mulville improved to 2-0 with a three-set victory over Anna Supatich Kuearum, 7-5, 2-6, 6-3. Titova won her sole singles match of the weekend by defeating Isabella Dunlap, 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, while Kubo beat Gala Arangio, 6-3, 6-1 and Costache won against Valeska San Martin Ramirez, 6-4, 6-4.
The Jayhawks rounded out the tournament by facing off against Arkansas on Saturday, led by a pair of doubles victories. Kubo and Massey finished their weekend with a 6-0 advantage over Stara and O’Donnell, followed by a 6-0 victory from Titova and Costache over Carolina Gomez Alonso and Kelly Keller.
Kansas would gain one victory in singles over the Razorbacks, as Jocelyn Massey defeated Morgan Cross in straight sets, 7-6 (3), 6-3.
The Jayhawks will round out the month of January by competing in the ITA Kickoff Tournament on January 26-27, which will be hosted by regional host Ohio State. Kansas is set to take on No. 3 seeded Arizona State on January 26 at 10 a.m. CT and will play either No. 1 Ohio State or No. 4 Notre Dame on January 27.
