Friday, April 11
Iowa City, Iowa
3:00 PM
UCLA
at
Iowa
Ahmani Guichard (left) and Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer
Photo by: Hritika Chaturvedi
No. 22 Women's Tennis Heads on Final Big Ten Road Trip
April 09, 2025 | Women's Tennis
The 22nd-ranked UCLA women's tennis team embarks on its final Big Ten Conference road trip of the season this week with visits to Iowa and Nebraska. Each meeting will be a first for UCLA in its program history. The Bruins (10-7, 5-3) open their Midwest swing Friday at Iowa's (12-6, 6-3) Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex, with first serve set for 3 p.m. PT. A visit to Nebraska (12-8, 2-7) and the Sid and Hazel Dillon Tennis Center follows Sunday at 10 a.m. PT.
FOLLOW LIVE
Iowa (VIDEO | STATS) and Nebraska (VIDEO, STATS) provide live coverage of matches played on their home courts.
Fans unable to attend home UCLA women's tennis matches can still follow live. Up-to-the-second scoring and streaming are available for all matches played at Los Angeles Tennis Center HERE.
Additionally, in-match updates for home and road contests can be found on the UCLA women's tennis X account.
PAST MATCHUPS
Series vs. Iowa: First meeting
Series vs. Nebraska: First meeting
LAST TIME OUT
UCLA earned a home sweep of Minnesota (April 6) and No. 19 Wisconsin (April 5) in Big Ten Conference action. Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer and Kate Fakih turned in clutch singles victories to help the Bruins snap Wisconsin's 13-match winning streak. With their team trailing 3-2, Lutkemeyer topped No. 5 Maria Sholokhova 7-5, 7-5 on the top court and Fakih followed with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 decision over Tianna Rangan on Court 4. Fakih also clinched the 4-0 win against Minnesota. UCLA dropped just five total games in its completed singles matches, with Fakih, Lutkemeyer and Bianca Fernandez each turning in a 6-0 set.
BRUINS SWEEP WEEKLY BIG TEN AWARDS
Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer and Kate Fakih were named Big Ten Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week for the week of April 2-9, the conference announced Wednesday. The Bruins earned a home sweep of Minnesota (April 6) and No. 19 Wisconsin (April 5) and each player was at the center of it, going 4-0 across singles and doubles matches. With UCLA trailing Wisconsin 3-2, Lutkemeyer on Court 1 delivered the highest-ranked win of her career. Tasked with taking down the newest ITA All-American Championships singles winner and nation's No. 5 singles player, Maria Sholokhova, Lutkemeyer did just that by a 7-5, 7-5 score. Fakih then outlasted Tianna Rangan 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the deciding contest on Court 4. The next day saw Fakih again deliver the fourth point, this time with a 6-0, 6-3 performance versus Minnesota's Sofia Pinto on Court 3.
IN THE RANKINGS
Team (April 8): No. 22 UCLA
Singles (April 8): No. 19 Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer, No. 33 Kate Fakih*, No. 76 Elise Wagle, No. 97 Kimmi Hance
Doubles (April 8): No. 2 Olivia Center*/Kate Fakih*, No. 19 Kimmi Hance/Elise Wagle
* - set or matched career high
UCLAccolades
Fakih Picks Up Fourth Big Ten Weekly Award โ Feb. 12
Wagle Voted Big Ten Player of the Week โ Feb. 5
Fakih Named Big Ten Freshman of the Week โ Jan. 29
Lutkemeyer Named to Big Ten Women's Tennis Player to Watch List โ Jan. 6
Lutkemeyer Tabbed Big Ten Player of the Week โ Nov. 13, 2024
Fakih Named Big Ten Player of the Week for Second Time โ Oct. 23, 2024
Fakih Named Big Ten Player of the Week โ Sept. 25, 2024
FALL RECAP
Bruins were in action at five fall tournaments, culminating with the first-ever fall NCAA individual championships. Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer beat teammate Kate Fakih in the ITA West Sectional Championships singles final. Elise Wagle reached the semifinals. All three players qualified for NCAAs with their performances. The all-freshman combination of Fakih and Olivia Center collected the doubles title, earning another berth. Kimmi Hance and Elise Wagle started the campaign with a strong showing at the ITA All-American Championships, achieving runner-up status in the doubles field for an NCAA spot of their own. Center and Fakih would go on a run at NCAAs, beating three nationally-ranked pairs en route to the title match. The duo ultimately fell in a third-set tiebreaker, but finished the fall with a 14-3 record (9-3 against ranked teams). Fakih also went 14-5 in singles play, while Lutkemeyer posted a 13-4 mark. Lutkemeyer and Guichard teamed to go 12-4 in doubles contests.
2023-24 IN REVIEW
UCLA went 21-6, reaching the NCAA Championships quarterfinal round. The Bruins recorded a 9-1 record in Pac-12 Conference play, to earn the final regular-season league title. The would clinch the crown with a 4-2 victory at 11th-ranked USC. UCLA knocked off five top-10 foes throughout the campaign: No. 5 Stanford, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Pepperdine, No. 8 USC and No. 9 Texas. The tandem of Tian Fangran and Elise Wagle was named the Pac-12 Doubles Team of the Year. Tian and Kimmi Hance received All-Pac-12 First Team honors. Bianca Fernandez was on the second team, while Ahmani Guichard and Elise Wagle made the honorable-mention list. Head coach Stella Sampras Webster was named the Wilson ITA Southwest Regional Coach of the Year and Fernandez picked up the region's rookie-of-the-year award. Fernandez, Hance and Tian/Wagle competed at the NCAA Championships individual event. Guichard (20-10) and Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer (20-8) tied for the team lead with 20 singles wins, while Lutkemeyer (30-4) piled up a team-best 30 doubles victories.
WHO'S BACK?
UCLA returns its most frequent participants on singles courts 2-6, including All-Pac-12 honorees Bianca Fernandez, Ahmani Guichard, Kimmi Hance and Elise Wagle. ITA Southwest Regional Rookie of the Year Fernandez had a team-high 14 dual-match singles wins and made the NCAA singles field with Hance. Double-digit singles winners in addition to Fernandez returning for the Bruins are Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer (13), Guichard (12), Wagle (11), and Hance (10). Lutkemeyer (21), Hance (18), Guichard (16) and Wagle (14) each bring at least 14 doubles victories from the 2023-24 season.
WHO'S NEW?
Freshmen Olivia Center (South Pasadena, Calif./San Marino HS) and Kate Fakih (Pasadena, Calif./Connections Academy) are new to UCLA for 2024-25. Frequent doubles partners throughout their junior careers, the Tennis Recruiting Network Blue Chip prospects teamed to gain entry into the US Open women's doubles main draw by capturing the Girls' 18 title at the 2023 USTA Billie Jean King National Championships in San Diego. Center also paired with Sophia Webster to claim the Girls' 18 doubles championship at the 2014 Easter Bowl in San Diego. Fakih qualified for the girls' draws at the Australian Open (singles, doubles), French Open (doubles) and US Open (singles, doubles) events in 2024.
SHIBAHARA SHINES
Ena Shibahara, who played for UCLA during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, has starred in doubles tournaments throughout her professional career and saw her career-high singles ranking rise from No. 503 to No. 132 in 2024. She earned her first Grand Slam championship in 2022, teaming with Wesley Koolhof to seize the mixed doubles title at Roland-Garros. Shibahara made her first major women's doubles final round alongside Shuko Aoyama at the 2023 Australian Open. Shibahara/Aoyama was the last pair standing at the 2023 National Bank Open in Toronto, giving each player her second WTA 1000 championship. Shibahara climbed to a career-best No. 4 position in the WTA's doubles rankings in March 2022 and entered 2025 at No. 46. She made her Grand Slam singles debut at the 2024 US Open, reaching the main draw as a qualifier before taking down Australia's Daria Saville in three sets. Shibahara went on to represent Japan at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup and made the most of her opportunity, beating then-No. 73 Jacqueline Cristian of Romania and then-No. 54 Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy.
STELLA'S STELLAR RÉSUMÉ
Head coach Stella Sampras Webster is in her 29th season at the helm of the UCLA women's tennis program, compiling an impressive overall record of 534-199 (.729). She is the second-longest-tenured active coach at UCLA, behind men's tennis head coach Billy Martin. Sampras Webster collected the 500th win of her illustrious career when the Bruins defeated UC San Diego on April 18, 2023. She has guided her alma mater to NCAA championships in 2014 and 2008, the first two in program history, and all three of its Pac-12 regular-season titles in 2024, 2021 and 2008. Sampras Webster's teams have finished top-10 nationally in 23 of her 27 completed seasons and in the top five 16 times. Four NCAA individual championships have been won under her watch: Tian Fangran in 2023, Gabby Andrews/Ayan Broomfield in 2019, Tracy Lin/Riza Zalameda in 2008 and Daniela Bercek/Lauren Fisher in 2004. Sampras Webster is a four-time Wilson ITA Southwest Regional Coach of the Year โ in 2024, 2021, 2012 and 2000 โ earned the national award in 2012. She was a four-time All-America honoree during her playing days at UCLA and as a freshman won the 1988 NCAA doubles title alongside Allyson Cooper.
FOLLOW LIVE
Iowa (VIDEO | STATS) and Nebraska (VIDEO, STATS) provide live coverage of matches played on their home courts.
Fans unable to attend home UCLA women's tennis matches can still follow live. Up-to-the-second scoring and streaming are available for all matches played at Los Angeles Tennis Center HERE.
Additionally, in-match updates for home and road contests can be found on the UCLA women's tennis X account.
PAST MATCHUPS
Series vs. Iowa: First meeting
Series vs. Nebraska: First meeting
LAST TIME OUT
UCLA earned a home sweep of Minnesota (April 6) and No. 19 Wisconsin (April 5) in Big Ten Conference action. Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer and Kate Fakih turned in clutch singles victories to help the Bruins snap Wisconsin's 13-match winning streak. With their team trailing 3-2, Lutkemeyer topped No. 5 Maria Sholokhova 7-5, 7-5 on the top court and Fakih followed with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 decision over Tianna Rangan on Court 4. Fakih also clinched the 4-0 win against Minnesota. UCLA dropped just five total games in its completed singles matches, with Fakih, Lutkemeyer and Bianca Fernandez each turning in a 6-0 set.
BRUINS SWEEP WEEKLY BIG TEN AWARDS
Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer and Kate Fakih were named Big Ten Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week for the week of April 2-9, the conference announced Wednesday. The Bruins earned a home sweep of Minnesota (April 6) and No. 19 Wisconsin (April 5) and each player was at the center of it, going 4-0 across singles and doubles matches. With UCLA trailing Wisconsin 3-2, Lutkemeyer on Court 1 delivered the highest-ranked win of her career. Tasked with taking down the newest ITA All-American Championships singles winner and nation's No. 5 singles player, Maria Sholokhova, Lutkemeyer did just that by a 7-5, 7-5 score. Fakih then outlasted Tianna Rangan 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the deciding contest on Court 4. The next day saw Fakih again deliver the fourth point, this time with a 6-0, 6-3 performance versus Minnesota's Sofia Pinto on Court 3.
IN THE RANKINGS
Team (April 8): No. 22 UCLA
Singles (April 8): No. 19 Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer, No. 33 Kate Fakih*, No. 76 Elise Wagle, No. 97 Kimmi Hance
Doubles (April 8): No. 2 Olivia Center*/Kate Fakih*, No. 19 Kimmi Hance/Elise Wagle
* - set or matched career high
UCLAccolades
Fakih Picks Up Fourth Big Ten Weekly Award โ Feb. 12
Wagle Voted Big Ten Player of the Week โ Feb. 5
Fakih Named Big Ten Freshman of the Week โ Jan. 29
Lutkemeyer Named to Big Ten Women's Tennis Player to Watch List โ Jan. 6
Lutkemeyer Tabbed Big Ten Player of the Week โ Nov. 13, 2024
Fakih Named Big Ten Player of the Week for Second Time โ Oct. 23, 2024
Fakih Named Big Ten Player of the Week โ Sept. 25, 2024
FALL RECAP
Bruins were in action at five fall tournaments, culminating with the first-ever fall NCAA individual championships. Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer beat teammate Kate Fakih in the ITA West Sectional Championships singles final. Elise Wagle reached the semifinals. All three players qualified for NCAAs with their performances. The all-freshman combination of Fakih and Olivia Center collected the doubles title, earning another berth. Kimmi Hance and Elise Wagle started the campaign with a strong showing at the ITA All-American Championships, achieving runner-up status in the doubles field for an NCAA spot of their own. Center and Fakih would go on a run at NCAAs, beating three nationally-ranked pairs en route to the title match. The duo ultimately fell in a third-set tiebreaker, but finished the fall with a 14-3 record (9-3 against ranked teams). Fakih also went 14-5 in singles play, while Lutkemeyer posted a 13-4 mark. Lutkemeyer and Guichard teamed to go 12-4 in doubles contests.
2023-24 IN REVIEW
UCLA went 21-6, reaching the NCAA Championships quarterfinal round. The Bruins recorded a 9-1 record in Pac-12 Conference play, to earn the final regular-season league title. The would clinch the crown with a 4-2 victory at 11th-ranked USC. UCLA knocked off five top-10 foes throughout the campaign: No. 5 Stanford, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Pepperdine, No. 8 USC and No. 9 Texas. The tandem of Tian Fangran and Elise Wagle was named the Pac-12 Doubles Team of the Year. Tian and Kimmi Hance received All-Pac-12 First Team honors. Bianca Fernandez was on the second team, while Ahmani Guichard and Elise Wagle made the honorable-mention list. Head coach Stella Sampras Webster was named the Wilson ITA Southwest Regional Coach of the Year and Fernandez picked up the region's rookie-of-the-year award. Fernandez, Hance and Tian/Wagle competed at the NCAA Championships individual event. Guichard (20-10) and Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer (20-8) tied for the team lead with 20 singles wins, while Lutkemeyer (30-4) piled up a team-best 30 doubles victories.
WHO'S BACK?
UCLA returns its most frequent participants on singles courts 2-6, including All-Pac-12 honorees Bianca Fernandez, Ahmani Guichard, Kimmi Hance and Elise Wagle. ITA Southwest Regional Rookie of the Year Fernandez had a team-high 14 dual-match singles wins and made the NCAA singles field with Hance. Double-digit singles winners in addition to Fernandez returning for the Bruins are Anne-Christine Lutkemeyer (13), Guichard (12), Wagle (11), and Hance (10). Lutkemeyer (21), Hance (18), Guichard (16) and Wagle (14) each bring at least 14 doubles victories from the 2023-24 season.
WHO'S NEW?
Freshmen Olivia Center (South Pasadena, Calif./San Marino HS) and Kate Fakih (Pasadena, Calif./Connections Academy) are new to UCLA for 2024-25. Frequent doubles partners throughout their junior careers, the Tennis Recruiting Network Blue Chip prospects teamed to gain entry into the US Open women's doubles main draw by capturing the Girls' 18 title at the 2023 USTA Billie Jean King National Championships in San Diego. Center also paired with Sophia Webster to claim the Girls' 18 doubles championship at the 2014 Easter Bowl in San Diego. Fakih qualified for the girls' draws at the Australian Open (singles, doubles), French Open (doubles) and US Open (singles, doubles) events in 2024.
SHIBAHARA SHINES
Ena Shibahara, who played for UCLA during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, has starred in doubles tournaments throughout her professional career and saw her career-high singles ranking rise from No. 503 to No. 132 in 2024. She earned her first Grand Slam championship in 2022, teaming with Wesley Koolhof to seize the mixed doubles title at Roland-Garros. Shibahara made her first major women's doubles final round alongside Shuko Aoyama at the 2023 Australian Open. Shibahara/Aoyama was the last pair standing at the 2023 National Bank Open in Toronto, giving each player her second WTA 1000 championship. Shibahara climbed to a career-best No. 4 position in the WTA's doubles rankings in March 2022 and entered 2025 at No. 46. She made her Grand Slam singles debut at the 2024 US Open, reaching the main draw as a qualifier before taking down Australia's Daria Saville in three sets. Shibahara went on to represent Japan at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup and made the most of her opportunity, beating then-No. 73 Jacqueline Cristian of Romania and then-No. 54 Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy.
STELLA'S STELLAR RÉSUMÉ
Head coach Stella Sampras Webster is in her 29th season at the helm of the UCLA women's tennis program, compiling an impressive overall record of 534-199 (.729). She is the second-longest-tenured active coach at UCLA, behind men's tennis head coach Billy Martin. Sampras Webster collected the 500th win of her illustrious career when the Bruins defeated UC San Diego on April 18, 2023. She has guided her alma mater to NCAA championships in 2014 and 2008, the first two in program history, and all three of its Pac-12 regular-season titles in 2024, 2021 and 2008. Sampras Webster's teams have finished top-10 nationally in 23 of her 27 completed seasons and in the top five 16 times. Four NCAA individual championships have been won under her watch: Tian Fangran in 2023, Gabby Andrews/Ayan Broomfield in 2019, Tracy Lin/Riza Zalameda in 2008 and Daniela Bercek/Lauren Fisher in 2004. Sampras Webster is a four-time Wilson ITA Southwest Regional Coach of the Year โ in 2024, 2021, 2012 and 2000 โ earned the national award in 2012. She was a four-time All-America honoree during her playing days at UCLA and as a freshman won the 1988 NCAA doubles title alongside Allyson Cooper.
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