Upcoming Event: Women's Tennis at Santa Barbara on January 18, 2026
Women's Tennis
at Santa Barbara
Friday, January 24
Palo Alto, CA
11:00 AM (MT)
University of Utah
vs
Ole Miss
Photo by: Anna Fuder/Utah Athletics
Utes head to ITA Kickoff Hosted by Stanford
1/23/2025 2:30 PM | Women's Tennis
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah women's tennis team hits the road this weekend, traveling to Palo Alto, Calif., for the ITA Kickoff hosted by Stanford, where they will start by taking on Ole Miss on Friday, Jan. 24, and then will either play Stanford or Memphis in the second day on Saturday.Â
MATCH INFORMATION
Utah (2-0) vs. Ole Miss (3-0)
DATE | TIME: Friday, Jan. 24 | 11 a.m. MT
LOCATION: Palo Alto, CA | West Campus Tennis Courts
TWITTER UPDATES: @UteWomensTennis
LAST TIME OUT
The Utah women's tennis team opened their spring season with dominant performances, defeating Utah Tech 5-0 and Montana State 4-0 in a home doubleheader.
Against Utah Tech, Utah took an early lead by sweeping the doubles matches. Kaila Barksdale and Hayley Roberts clinched a 6-4 victory on court three, while Sara Akid and Emma Valletta sealed the doubles point with a win on court one. The Utes carried this momentum into singles play, with Roberts earning a 6-0, 6-1 victory on court six in her collegiate debut. Barksdale and Akid followed suit, securing straight-set wins to clinch the match. Emma Kamper added a 6-1, 6-1 victory at the top spot, moving the final match score to 5-0.Â
In the match against Montana State, the Utes again swept doubles. Barksdale and Roberts led the way with a 6-2 win on court three, while Kamper and Dylan Lolofie followed with a 6-2 victory on court two. Akid and Valletta closed out the doubles sweep with a 7-5 win at the top spot. In singles, Valletta delivered a 6-2, 6-0 win on court four, and Barksdale extended Utah's lead with a 6-3, 6-1 victory on court three. Lolofie clinched the match with a 6-2, 6-0 win on court five.
HEAD COACH RUTHANN ALLEN
The Utah women's tennis team welcomed Ruth Ann Allen as head coach this season. A Utah native and a Utah All-American and Hall of Famer, Allen returns to lead the program after a successful tenure as head coach at Weber State. She guided the Wildcats to a Big Sky Championship in 2023 and was twice named Big Sky Coach of the Year (2022, 2023).
Before Weber State, Allen spent 20 seasons as an assistant coach at Utah, where she helped the Utes secure multiple NCAA Tournament bids, two Mountain West Conference titles, and numerous top-five regional rankings. Allen, an All-American during her playing career at Utah, was inducted into the Utah Tennis Association Hall of Fame in 2023.
SCOUTING OLE MISS
The Rebels will enter the weekend with a 3-0 record after they topped Memphis, Arkansas State, and Tennessee State in their first three contests. Utah has met with Ole Miss just twice before, dropping both matches. The two programs last clashed in January of 2020, where the Rebels defeated the Utes 4-0.
NEXT UP
The Utes will return to the Eccles Tennis Center for three consecutive matches; a double header taking on Utah State and Idaho State (Feb. 7) and a matchup against Memphis on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
FOLLOW THE UTES
Fans can follow us on social media (Twitter: @UteWomensTennis | Instagram: @UtahWomensTennis | Facebook: Facebook.com/Utahwomenstennis).
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MATCH INFORMATION
Utah (2-0) vs. Ole Miss (3-0)
DATE | TIME: Friday, Jan. 24 | 11 a.m. MT
LOCATION: Palo Alto, CA | West Campus Tennis Courts
TWITTER UPDATES: @UteWomensTennis
LAST TIME OUT
The Utah women's tennis team opened their spring season with dominant performances, defeating Utah Tech 5-0 and Montana State 4-0 in a home doubleheader.
Against Utah Tech, Utah took an early lead by sweeping the doubles matches. Kaila Barksdale and Hayley Roberts clinched a 6-4 victory on court three, while Sara Akid and Emma Valletta sealed the doubles point with a win on court one. The Utes carried this momentum into singles play, with Roberts earning a 6-0, 6-1 victory on court six in her collegiate debut. Barksdale and Akid followed suit, securing straight-set wins to clinch the match. Emma Kamper added a 6-1, 6-1 victory at the top spot, moving the final match score to 5-0.Â
In the match against Montana State, the Utes again swept doubles. Barksdale and Roberts led the way with a 6-2 win on court three, while Kamper and Dylan Lolofie followed with a 6-2 victory on court two. Akid and Valletta closed out the doubles sweep with a 7-5 win at the top spot. In singles, Valletta delivered a 6-2, 6-0 win on court four, and Barksdale extended Utah's lead with a 6-3, 6-1 victory on court three. Lolofie clinched the match with a 6-2, 6-0 win on court five.
HEAD COACH RUTHANN ALLEN
The Utah women's tennis team welcomed Ruth Ann Allen as head coach this season. A Utah native and a Utah All-American and Hall of Famer, Allen returns to lead the program after a successful tenure as head coach at Weber State. She guided the Wildcats to a Big Sky Championship in 2023 and was twice named Big Sky Coach of the Year (2022, 2023).
Before Weber State, Allen spent 20 seasons as an assistant coach at Utah, where she helped the Utes secure multiple NCAA Tournament bids, two Mountain West Conference titles, and numerous top-five regional rankings. Allen, an All-American during her playing career at Utah, was inducted into the Utah Tennis Association Hall of Fame in 2023.
SCOUTING OLE MISS
The Rebels will enter the weekend with a 3-0 record after they topped Memphis, Arkansas State, and Tennessee State in their first three contests. Utah has met with Ole Miss just twice before, dropping both matches. The two programs last clashed in January of 2020, where the Rebels defeated the Utes 4-0.
NEXT UP
The Utes will return to the Eccles Tennis Center for three consecutive matches; a double header taking on Utah State and Idaho State (Feb. 7) and a matchup against Memphis on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
FOLLOW THE UTES
Fans can follow us on social media (Twitter: @UteWomensTennis | Instagram: @UtahWomensTennis | Facebook: Facebook.com/Utahwomenstennis).
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Players Mentioned
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