Carla Mendez | Assistant Sports Director
With the first serve of FIU tennis team’s 2024 campaign, the Panthers look to defend their title as Conference USA champions.
Coming off the heels of a strong season in 2023, the Panthers finished with an 18-4 record and won their second conference championship in school history. They won their first title since the 2017-2018 season and earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Championships.
The 2022-2023 season:
After bolstering a 15-4 regular season record and a 3-1 record in conference play, FIU entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed. Their quarterfinal matchup came against the eighth-seeded UTSA Roadrunners on April 21, 2023.
That match marked the beginning of a dominant championship run for the Panthers, as they took care of business and claimed a 4-0 victory.
Over the remainder of the tournament, they only lost one set on their path to a championship. In their semifinal matchup against the No.4 LA Tech Bulldogs, they took another 4-0 win and advanced to the final round.
Reaching the championship round, FIU faced off with the Rice Owls, who entered the tournament as the No. 3 seed.
Senior Salma Loudili and freshman Katerina Mandelikova took a 6-3 win in doubles over Rice juniors Saara Orav and Darya Schwartzman. It marked the duo’s fourth consecutive victory in the tournament.
Keeping their momentum in the singles division, sophomore Yasmine Kabbaj triumphed at No. 1 and sophomore Oyinlomo Quadre claimed her 13th-consecutive singles win.
Their efforts were enough to seal the deal with a 4-1 victory and secure the Conference USA championship.
The win earned the Panthers an automatic bid in the NCAA Champions tournament and marked their 12th-consecutive appearance in the tournament. For their first round matchup, they faced off with the Auburn Tigers on Friday, May 5, 2023.
Unable to maintain their success from the conference championships, they took a close 4-3 loss in a match that depended on a pivotal third-set deuce point.
In a matchup that held tension from beginning to end, FIU was able to claim an early advantage by taking their first doubles set. Loudili and Mandelikova set the match’s intensity and took a 6-3 win over Auburn’s senior Adeline Flach and sophomore Angella Okutoyi.
However, the Panthers wouldn’t be able to carry their momentum from doubles into the singles matches.
After falling into a 3-1 deficit to the Tigers, Mandelikova and Quadre rallied to square the score at 3-3. Despite their efforts, it still wasn’t enough, as Auburn took a 4-3 victory and eliminated FIU from the NCAA Championship tournament.
The 2023-2024 season:
Looking to defend their conference championship, the Panthers 2023-2024 campaign is now underway.
This season marks head coach Katarina Petrovic’s 12th season at the helm of the tennis program. Under her leadership, the Panthers have earned a 157-69 record and gained national notoriety.
While FIU has found a large amount of success with Petrovic running the team, they have struggled to find their footing in the early season. Currently, they hold a 2-2 record after taking a 4-2 win over the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2024.
That match was their second of two played in the ITA Kickoff Weekend Tournament in Gainesville, Florida. In their first game against the No. 8 Florida Gators on Saturday, Jan. 27, they struggled to keep up and took a 4-2 loss.
Trying to prevent a losing streak following their second consecutive defeat, the Panthers rallied a comeback in the next match.
Able to build an early lead, Wake Forest took two of the three doubles matches. Undeterred by the slight disadvantage, FIU recovered quickly and won four of the five singles matches.
Managing to stage a comeback and prevent a three game losing streak, the Panthers took a 4-2 win. After splitting their two games at the ITA Kickoff Weekend, they left the tournament with a 2-2 record.
Despite their relatively slow start to the season, there is no reason for the team to panic about their record. Over their first five games last season, they held a 3-2 record, which didn’t stop them from winning a conference championship.
Adversity is a large part of a standard sports season, as sports wouldn’t be compelling without it. Only two games after their slow start last year, they opened up a 10-match win streak, the largest of the entire season.
If FIU wishes to recapture their glory from 2023, they must remain together and show their resilience. They have demonstrated the capability to overcome similar circumstances in the past, all they need to do is remain on their path.
Looking to improve to 3-2, the FIU tennis team is hosting the No. 23 UCF Knights on Friday, Feb. 2, 2024 in Miami, Florida
The match is set to begin at 1 p.m at the FIU Tennis Courts.
Follow Carla Mendez on X: @carladfmendez