ROME, Ga. (5/4/26) – The Arkansas State women’s tennis team is set for their first round match with McNeese at the UTR Women’s NIT Championship Tuesday in Rome, Ga.

“Our mantra is the same,” said A-State head coach Sujay Lama. “Stay hungry, have courage and trust in our preparation and togetherness. This opportunity to extend the season has been a true blessing and we are going to be fully ready to battle tomorrow against a a very good team.”

A-State (13-9) heads into the tournament having won six of its last eight matches. The Red Wolves posted their second consecutive season with 13 wins after not reaching the mark since 2008. A-State has back-to-back seasons with double digit victories for the first time since the 2008-09 seasons. With a combined 26 wins over the last two seasons, the Red Wolves have their most in a two-year stretch since claiming 30 wins over the 1999 (13-8) and 2000 (17-4) seasons. A-State earned its first win over a ranked opponent in program history with a 4-0 sweep of No. 74 South Alabama back on April 10.

Seeded third among the eight teams, the Red Wolves open against sixth-seeded McNeese at 1:30 p.m. (CT) on Tuesday. Kansas State (8-13) is the top seed and takes on Northern Illinois (17-8) while North Alabama (15-6) is the No. 4 seed taking on No. 5 seed Army (22-7). North Texas (17-8) is the No. 2 seed taking on seventh-seeded College of Charleston (16-8).

The tournament features eight teams and is in its fourth season. Similarly to other collegiate invitational tournaments, UTR offers teams which did not make the NCAA tournament a chance at postseason competition. This bid represents the first postseason bid in program history for Arkansas State women’s tennis.

A-State is led by Sun Belt Conference Player to Watch Meghna Arun Kumar. The freshman compiled a 19-9 overall record, 14-5 in duals. Of her 19 wins, 17 came in straight sets. Lilly Cvanciger has 18 total singles victories, nine of which came in duals. Carla Muro Castellvi has 10 duals wins in singles while Anna Grigoreva has eight, Sarah Millard has six and Hanmare McAslin and Helena Bueno have five each.

The Red Wolves are led by the pair of Cvanciger and Muro Castellvie in doubles. The pair has an 18-12 overall record this season, 7-8 in duals. Grigoreva and Millard have occupied the No. 2 spot in doubles recently sporting a 2-3 record. Bueno and McAslin are the No. 3 pair with a 6-3 record. A-State has an 11-0 record this season after winning the doubles point.

Live streaming of matches is available on Playsight with live scoring provided by IOnCourt.