South Carolina Opens Spring Campaign with the Carolina Kickoff

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Gamecocks will open their spring season with the Carolina Kickoff this weekend at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center. South Carolina will face opponents from No. 12 Georgia Tech, No. 25 Auburn and Wake Forest over the course of the tournament.
 
South Carolina will first play No. 12 Georgia Tech on Friday at 10 a.m. Saturday’s action will see South Carolina take on No. 25 Auburn in singles and doubles at 10 a.m. before facing Wake Forest in doubles later that afternoon. Sunday, the Gamecocks will finish competing against Wake Forest in singles matches that will not start before 11 a.m.
 
Gamecock Notables

• Three Gamecocks received ITA Preseason Singles Rankings: No. 2 Sarah Hamner, No. 28 Ayana Akli and No. 118 Megan Davies. Doubles pair Davies/Allie Gretkowski earned the No. 37 ranking.
• Freshman Sarah Hamner became the first Gamecock in program history to win the ITA All-American National Championship in singles. She advanced from the qualifying draw to reach the title match.
• South Carolina earned 84 wins in singles competition in fall 2021. Twenty-six of those wins came against ranked opponents.
• No. 2 Hamner earned the highest singles ranking in program history.
• The Gamecocks participated in a collective eight tournaments in fall 2021, including a successful showing in the Gamecock Shootout. They nearly swept doubles play, going 11-1 in the home event.
• In doubles, South Carolina went a combined 30-25 in the fall with a 5-3 record against ranked opponents.

 
Georgia Tech Notables

• Georgia Tech is tied for No. 12 in the ITA Preseason Team Rankings. They also received three singles rankings and one doubles ranking: No. 38 Kylie Bilchev, No. 69 Ava Hrastar, No. 85 Carol Lee and No. 12 Bilchev/Hrastar.
• The Yellow Jackets participated in four tournaments this fall, winning 53 singles and 22 doubles matchups.
• At the Debbie Southern Furman Fall Classic, Georgia Tech and South Carolina met on the courts six times. Each team took three wins in those six meetings.
• Georgia Tech’s ranked singles players went a combined 20-6 in the fall. 
• The 11-member roster is led by head coach Rodney Harmon in his 10th season, assistant coach Alexis Casati in her second season and volunteer assistant coach Ben Roeser in his first season.

 
Auburn Notables

• Auburn was named the No. 25 team in the ITA Preseason Rankings while No. 79 Selin Ovunc and No. 115 Carolyn Ansari received singles rankings.
• The Tigers saw an action-packed fall, competing in a combined eight tournaments including the ITA All-American National Championships and the ITA Southern Regional Championships.
• Auburn went a combined 40-34 in singles and 18-18 in doubles in fall 2021.
• No. 79 Ovunc advanced to the round of 16 in the 2021 NCAA Singles Championship.
• The eight Auburn players are led by head coach Caroline Lilley in her third season, associate head coach Megan Falcon in her first season and volunteer assistant coach Anastasia Antal in her first season.

 
Wake Forest Notables

• The Demon Deacons earned a combined five singles and doubles rankings in the ITA preseason polls. No. 35 Carolyn Campana, No. 58 Casie Wooten and No. 75 Anna Campana notched singles rankings while No. 2 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth and No. 15 Samantha Martinelli/Casie Wooten earned spots on the doubles list. 
• No. 2 Brylin/Killingsworth had a successful fall season, highlighted by winning the ITA All-American National Championship doubles title.
• Wake Forest and South Carolina crossed paths in two fall tournaments: the Debbie Southern Furman Fall Classic and the ITA Carolina Regionals.
• The Demon Deacons enter the spring with 69 singles wins and 34 doubles wins under their belt from the fall. 
• The 10-member squad is led by head coach Jeff Wyshner and associate head coach Andy Roland, both in their 12th seasons. 

 
Tentative Full Schedule of Play
Friday
10 a.m. – South Carolina vs. Georgia Tech – singles and doubles
Not before 1:30 p.m. – Wake Forest vs. Auburn – singles and doubles
 
Saturday
10 a.m. South Carolina vs. Auburn – singles and doubles
Followed by  Georgia Tech vs. Auburn – doubles
Not before 1:30 p.m. – Georgia Tech vs. Wake Forest – singles and doubles
Followed by South Carolina vs. Wake Forest – doubles
 
Sunday
9 a.m. – Auburn vs Georgia Tech – singles
Not before 11 a.m. – South Carolina vs. Wake Forest – singles