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For the first time since 2012, the Ole Miss women’s tennis team will host an NCAA regional at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center. The Lady Rebels earned the no. 5 overall seed after a great season in which they ran roughshod through the SEC and saw no. 1 singles player Arianne Hartono become the first player in program history to be named SEC Player of the Year. The Rebels will be making their 10th straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
Also in the Rebels’ region are No. 27 Syracuse, Missouri State, and Wichita State.
Arianne Hartono:
— Ole Miss Women's Tennis (@OleMissWTennis) April 25, 2018
Highest ranked SEC singles player at No. 5 ✅
Highest ranked SEC doubles team at No. 7 ✅
12 nationally ranked wins this spring ✅
20-2 dual match record ✅
First @SEC Player of the Year in program history ✅#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/cloV81LGRi
Hartono, currently ranked 5th at no. 1 singles, is also part of a doubles tandem with Alexa Bortles that is ranked no. 7, which is tops in the SEC. Tea Jandric, Sabina Machalova, and Anna Vrbenska were also second-team All-SEC, and Machalova was named to the SEC All-Freshman team.
The Rebels will face Missouri State in the first round match on Friday. The Bears earned an automatic bid after winning the Missouri Valley Conference tournament with a 4-2 victory over Northern Iowa. It was their first conference title since 2002 and since resurrecting their program in 2015 after a nine-year absence.
This is a great opportunity to get out to the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center and support the Rebs as they look to advance to the Sweet 16 for the ninth time in program history. If they win both matches in Oxford, they’ll head to the Wake Forest Tennis Complex in Winston-Salem, North Carolina May 17-22 to compete for the title.