Kansas hits the road for two away matches

LAWRENCE, Kan. – With Nina Khmelnitckaia and Tess Bernard-Feigenbaum coming off a pair of doubles wins against ranked opponents, Kansas looks to carry that momentum into the two tough road matches it will play this weekend. The Jayhawks (2-1) will travel to North Carolina State (3-1) and William & Mary (2-2) for matches on Friday and Sunday, respectively.
 
After wins against the No. 44 and No. 53-ranked doubles teams last weekend, Khmelnitckaia and Bernard-Feigenbaum enter the match on a six-match win streak and improved to 12-3 on the season. On Friday, the duo will take on North Carolina State’s No. 52-ranked doubles team of Alejandra Cisneros and Anna Rodgers.
 
“Whether it’s the number or names next to pairings they’re (Khmelnitckaia/Bernard-Feigenbaum) playing good doubles,” said head coach Todd Chapman. “They’ve been committed to being great teammates together and playing the style that suits them best. If they can continue down that path, I’m not really worried about whoever they match up with, they’re going to have a chance to be successful.”
 
Sophomore Anastasia Rychagova, ranked No. 65 nationally, has five-consecutive singles wins for the third time this season and will face North Carolina State’s No. 36 Martina Frantova at No. 1 singles Friday.
                                                                                                                         
Friday’s match at North Carolina State will start at 12 p.m., CT. Both teams are coming off 4-0 losses and are meeting for the first time since 1998, when the Jayhawks took the victory. Next, the Jayhawks will visit Williamsburg, Virginia, to face William & Mary at 11 a.m., CT Sunday. This will be the first time the two have met since the Tribe won in 1999. William & Mary lead the all-time series, 4-2.
 
“We have a big challenge in front of us,” said Chapman, “but we also have a big opportunity. To have the opportunity to win at either place, we set ourselves up to start building our resume to make the NCAA Tournament.”
 
Along with Kansas, both North Carolina State and William & Mary made the NCAA Tournament last year. All three lost in the first round; Kansas to UC Santa Barbara, North Carolina State to Arizona State, and William & Mary fell to Texas.
 
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