FLORENCE, Ala. (March 18, 2025) – The University of North Alabama women's tennis team returns to the UNA Tennis Courts this week for its next two duals, hosting the Lipscomb Bisons and Central Arkansas Bears in Florence.
The Lions ready for their first set of bouts in Atlantic Sun Conference play, with UNA looking to extend its 2-0 conference start against the Bisons and Bears. UNA faces Lipscomb to open on Wednesday, ending the week versus Central Arkansas on Friday.
The Lipscomb dual serves as doubleheader with UNA Men's Tennis, who face the Bisons in the afternoon at 3 p.m.
First serve for both duals are set for 11 a.m. Live stats will be available for both duals with links becoming available closer to match time.
Full results and a recap will be posted on RoarLions.com following the action, but fans can also follow along on the UNA Tennis social media pages.
DUAL 1 INFO
Matchup: North Alabama vs. Lipscomb
Date: Wednesday, March 19
Time: 11 a.m.
Location: Florence, Ala.
Venue: UNA Tennis Courts
Social Media: @UNATennis
DUAL 2 INFO
Matchup: North Alabama vs. Central Arkansas
Date: Friday, March 21
Time: 11 a.m.
Location: Florence, Ala.
Venue: UNA Tennis Courts
Social Media: @UNATennis
NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama's opening ASUN weekend saw the Lions go 2-0 in action against Austin Peay and Bellarmine. UNA defeated the Governors, 5-2, to start the weekend on Friday, March 14, concluding with a 6-1 victory against the Knights on Sunday, March 16.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: UNA are on a hot streak entering the week, winning its last eight-straight duals. North Alabama has won all eight duals by three or more team points and swept opponents in three of the matchups (Missouri State, SEMO and Alabama A&M). North Alabama is winning both singles and doubles at a high rate, with the Lions victorious in 72.9 percent of singles matches and 72.5 percent in doubles. Junior Eeva Ristola has a perfect 11-0 record in doubles to lead the team, with sophomore Ada Karabacak the leader in singles with an 10-1 record. Senior Stanislava Bobrovnikova has a strong singles record at 9-1 record, while junior Senem Ocal is 8-2 in her singles matches. Bobrovnikova also sports an 8-3 doubles record, with Karabacak third on the team at 7-3.
SCOUTING LIPSCOMB: The Bisons enter the week at 8-3 overall with a 2-0 record in ASUN play. Last time out, Lipscomb took two wins over Bellarmine and Austin Peay to open the conference schedule on March 14 and 16. The Bisons are currently on a three-dual win streak, beating Belmont on March 7 in the final nonconference dual of the season. Across Fall 2024 and Spring 2025, the team won 49 percent of their doubles matches and 65.5 percent of their singles matches. Mariia Dolzhenko leads in doubles with 12 wins, and Sofiia Paladi has the team-high 21 victories in singles. Paladi has been the ASUN's Women's Tennis Player of the Week twice this season (Jan. 29 and Feb. 12). Lipscomb's head coach is Jamie Aid.
SERIES HISTORY: The Bisons lead the series, 16-3, in 19 all-time meetings. Lipscomb has won the last 11 meetings with North Alabama's last win coming in 2011.
SCOUTING CENTRAL ARKANSAS: Central Arkansas serves as the final opponent on the week for UNA, traveling to Florence with a 7-8 record and 0-2 ASUN record. The Bears look to get back in the win column after dropping their first ASUN contests to Stetson and FGCU last time out. UCA was voted seventh in the conference's Preseason Coaches Poll prior to the season. The Bears are led by Head Coach Casey Wharton.
SERIES HISTORY: North Alabama holds a slight 7-6 advantage over Central Arkansas in what will be the 14th all-time meeting. The Lions defeated the Bears, 4-3, in the last meeting on April 7, 2024.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
