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Women’s Tennis 2024-25 Season In Review
June 16, 2025 | Women's Tennis
In its first season as a member of the Big Ten, the Husky women's tennis team garnered major success on the court, finishing third in the conference.
Under 11th-year head coach Robin Stephenson, the Dawgs went 21-5, tied for the second most wins in program history. This season also marked just the sixth time in program history that UW won 20+ matches.
The Huskies concluded their inaugural B1G season with an 11-2 record, good for third in the league behind Michigan (13-0) and Ohio State (12-1).
BEST IN THE NORTHWEST
The 21-5 Dawgs were slotted at No. 18 in the final ITA rankings, the fifth highest final ranking for Washington and second highest for Stephenson.
Washington also finished No. 1 in the ITA Northwest regional rankings, with two Husky doubles pairs earning a Top-10 spot (No. 4 Alexia Jacobs/Reece Carter and No. 9 McKenna Koenig/Carina Syrtveit).
Five Huskies also finished in the Top-20 of the final regional rankings for singles, including Carter (No. 8), Erika Matsuda (No. 10), Koenig (No. 14), Syrtveit (No. 16), and Jacobs (No. 18).
MAKING A MARK ON MONTLAKE
All four UW newcomers made an immediate impact to the team's culture and success, as Washington had nearly half a new roster with the additions of freshman Syrtveit and transfers Reece Carter (Arizona), McKenna Koenig (USC), and Sophie Luescher (Oregon).
Carter paired up with sophomore Alexia Jacobs in doubles play starting in the fall and the two made a splash right off the bat, upsetting the No. 1-ranked doubles duo from Oklahoma State in the opening round of All-Americans.
The two finished the year 13-9 at the top of the doubles lineup and stayed in the top 85 of the ITA doubles rankings the entirety of spring, including a ranking as high as No. 48.
Syrtveit led the Huskies in wins at No. 6 singles, finishing 18-4 in dual singles and 10-2 in Big Ten dual matches.
All six Huskies in the singles lineup finished the season with winning records and 12 or more victories.
(NON) CONFERENCE DOMINANCE
The Dawgs posted two eight-match win streaks on the way to 21 victories, including opening up the season with six straight non-conference wins and two B1G road wins over Maryland and Rutgers.
In its B1G home kickoff, the Huskies fell 3-4 to USC before winning another eight straight – a streak that spanned seven conference victories and a 4-2 win over then-No. 23 Pepperdine.
POSTSEASON PLAY
In the first ever Big Ten Tournament for the Huskies, Washington travelled to a familiar spot in Ojai, Calif.'s Libbey Park (previously the home of the Pac-12 Championships), entering the tournament as the No. 3 seed.
The Dawgs took down USC 4-1 in the B1G quarterfinal to earn a spot in the conference semifinals against Ohio State.
After losing the doubles point to the Trojans, Carter led the way with a win over then-No. 64 Emma Charney at No. 2 singles. Koenig and Syrtveit followed suit with two-set wins of their own before Luescher clinched the quarterfinal victory in a second set tiebreak.
Washington fell 1-4 to eventual Big Ten champion Ohio State in semifinal action.
Syrtveit was named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team, going 2-0 in singles action including earning the sole point for the Huskies in the loss to Ohio State.
The conference tournament win over USC (the first over the Trojans since the 2022-23 season), set the Dawgs up as the No. 16 seed and hosts of the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
UW dominated with a 4-0 sweep over Stetson, the first ever matchup between the two schools, in first round action.
The Huskies fell in the second round on Montlake to Cal, 0-4.
B1G TIME HONORS
Three Huskies were named to Big Ten All-Conference teams for stellar opening seasons in the league.
Carter earned a spot on the All-Big Ten First Team, Matsuda was selected to All-Big Ten Second Team, and Syrtveit was one of 10 first-year student-athletes on the league's All-Freshman Team. Matsuda was also named a Big Ten sportsmanship honoree in addition to second team honors.
Carter boasted a first-team selection for the third-straight season, as the junior was a two-time All-Pac-12 First Team honoree each of her two seasons at Arizona.
In addition to a spot on the All-Freshman Team, Syrtveit notched league Freshman of the Week honors on two occasions during the spring.
ACADEMIC WEAPONS
Four Huskies earned All-Big Ten Team academic recognition for the spring quarter, as Matsuda, Jacobs, Catherine Gagnon, and Zehra Suko earned a spot on the spring academic All-Big Ten team list. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students must be on a varsity team, have been enrolled full time at the institution for a minimum of 12 months, and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.
Carter, Matsuda, and Luescher were also named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. The honor requires a cumulative 3.50 GPA and significant on-court contributions.
Under 11th-year head coach Robin Stephenson, the Dawgs went 21-5, tied for the second most wins in program history. This season also marked just the sixth time in program history that UW won 20+ matches.
The Huskies concluded their inaugural B1G season with an 11-2 record, good for third in the league behind Michigan (13-0) and Ohio State (12-1).
BEST IN THE NORTHWEST
The 21-5 Dawgs were slotted at No. 18 in the final ITA rankings, the fifth highest final ranking for Washington and second highest for Stephenson.
Washington also finished No. 1 in the ITA Northwest regional rankings, with two Husky doubles pairs earning a Top-10 spot (No. 4 Alexia Jacobs/Reece Carter and No. 9 McKenna Koenig/Carina Syrtveit).
Five Huskies also finished in the Top-20 of the final regional rankings for singles, including Carter (No. 8), Erika Matsuda (No. 10), Koenig (No. 14), Syrtveit (No. 16), and Jacobs (No. 18).
MAKING A MARK ON MONTLAKE
All four UW newcomers made an immediate impact to the team's culture and success, as Washington had nearly half a new roster with the additions of freshman Syrtveit and transfers Reece Carter (Arizona), McKenna Koenig (USC), and Sophie Luescher (Oregon).
Carter paired up with sophomore Alexia Jacobs in doubles play starting in the fall and the two made a splash right off the bat, upsetting the No. 1-ranked doubles duo from Oklahoma State in the opening round of All-Americans.
The two finished the year 13-9 at the top of the doubles lineup and stayed in the top 85 of the ITA doubles rankings the entirety of spring, including a ranking as high as No. 48.
Syrtveit led the Huskies in wins at No. 6 singles, finishing 18-4 in dual singles and 10-2 in Big Ten dual matches.
All six Huskies in the singles lineup finished the season with winning records and 12 or more victories.
(NON) CONFERENCE DOMINANCE
The Dawgs posted two eight-match win streaks on the way to 21 victories, including opening up the season with six straight non-conference wins and two B1G road wins over Maryland and Rutgers.
In its B1G home kickoff, the Huskies fell 3-4 to USC before winning another eight straight – a streak that spanned seven conference victories and a 4-2 win over then-No. 23 Pepperdine.
POSTSEASON PLAY
In the first ever Big Ten Tournament for the Huskies, Washington travelled to a familiar spot in Ojai, Calif.'s Libbey Park (previously the home of the Pac-12 Championships), entering the tournament as the No. 3 seed.
The Dawgs took down USC 4-1 in the B1G quarterfinal to earn a spot in the conference semifinals against Ohio State.
After losing the doubles point to the Trojans, Carter led the way with a win over then-No. 64 Emma Charney at No. 2 singles. Koenig and Syrtveit followed suit with two-set wins of their own before Luescher clinched the quarterfinal victory in a second set tiebreak.
Washington fell 1-4 to eventual Big Ten champion Ohio State in semifinal action.
Syrtveit was named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team, going 2-0 in singles action including earning the sole point for the Huskies in the loss to Ohio State.
The conference tournament win over USC (the first over the Trojans since the 2022-23 season), set the Dawgs up as the No. 16 seed and hosts of the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
UW dominated with a 4-0 sweep over Stetson, the first ever matchup between the two schools, in first round action.
The Huskies fell in the second round on Montlake to Cal, 0-4.
B1G TIME HONORS
Three Huskies were named to Big Ten All-Conference teams for stellar opening seasons in the league.
Carter earned a spot on the All-Big Ten First Team, Matsuda was selected to All-Big Ten Second Team, and Syrtveit was one of 10 first-year student-athletes on the league's All-Freshman Team. Matsuda was also named a Big Ten sportsmanship honoree in addition to second team honors.
Carter boasted a first-team selection for the third-straight season, as the junior was a two-time All-Pac-12 First Team honoree each of her two seasons at Arizona.
In addition to a spot on the All-Freshman Team, Syrtveit notched league Freshman of the Week honors on two occasions during the spring.
ACADEMIC WEAPONS
Four Huskies earned All-Big Ten Team academic recognition for the spring quarter, as Matsuda, Jacobs, Catherine Gagnon, and Zehra Suko earned a spot on the spring academic All-Big Ten team list. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students must be on a varsity team, have been enrolled full time at the institution for a minimum of 12 months, and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.
Carter, Matsuda, and Luescher were also named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. The honor requires a cumulative 3.50 GPA and significant on-court contributions.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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