Kansas Lands Three in Final ITA Fall Rankings

LAWRENCE, Kan. – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) released the 2019 Oracle ITA Final Fall Rankings Wednesday. KU tennis has two singles and one doubles pair in the top-100 between the two lists. Sonia Smagina was individually ranked as No. 63 while Malkia Ngounoue was listed as No. 93. Smagina paired with freshman Roxana Manu came in at No. 42 in doubles.

The No. 63 ranked sophomore capped the 2019 fall season with 13-3 record, highlighted by defeating two higher-ranked opponents, No. 41 Ilze Hattingh (ASU) and then ranked No. 54, Vanessa Wong, at the Arizona State Thunderbird Invitational.

Before the ITA release, Ngounoue competed unranked in singles action, which makes coming in at No. 93 even more impressive. This marks the first national rank for the sophomore as a singles player. The sophomore cleared an 8-5 mark on the season.

Smagina and teammate Manu checked in at No. 42 in doubles, top-50 of the ITA rankings. This is a first for the freshman, Manu, and the third-highest doubles ranking for Smagina. The pair ended the fall slate with a 4-1 record.