Trio of Tigers Earn LSWA All-Louisiana Honors (2024)

BATON ROUGE, La. – Three members of the LSU women’s tennis team were named to the 2024 Louisiana Sports Writers Association’s All-Louisiana teams. Anita Sahdiieva and Aran Teixidó Garcia earned spots on the first team while Florentine Dekkers was named to the second team.

Six players were voted to the first and second teams each while honors for Player of the Year, Newcomer of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year were voted on separately. The All-Louisiana honors were selected by the state’s tennis media relation contacts.

Sahdiieva transferred to LSU from Baylor for the 2023/24 and improved her win totals in both singles and doubles in her first year as a Tiger. She posted a 16-5 mark in singles and a 15-11 record in doubles this season, with her 12 singles wins in dual matches having led the team. She scored a point in singles and/or doubles in all six of LSU’s SEC wins in the regular season, one of only two players to do so.

Sahdiieva picked up 11 doubles wins at the No. 1 doubles spot with two different freshman partners, including four against ranked foes with Kenna Erickson. She enjoyed success in the fall as well when she finished runner-up in doubles with freshman Kinaa Graham at the 2023 ITA Women’s Southern Regional. She and Erickson finished the season with a final ranking of No. 67 in the ITA doubles rankings.

In her lone season as a Tiger, Teixidó Garcia led the team in both singles and doubles wins in dual matches after transferring from Memphis, going 12-9 in singles and 13-12 in doubles. She played at the No. 1-3 singles spots for the Tigers and primarily at the No. 2 doubles spot and was a crucial part of the team’s success this spring.

Teixidó Garcia’s biggest singles win of the season came against Arkansas, where she took down No. 26 Carolina Gomez in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, to help LSU grab a 4-2 win on the road. Her veteran experience played a crucial part in LSU’s first NCAA Tournament win since 2021 when she clinched the doubles point in a 7-6(4) tiebreaker at the No. 3 spot with Florentine Dekkers before winning her singles match in straight sets at the No. 2 singles court, 6-2, 6-4. The Tigers would go on to beat Baylor, 4-3, to advance to the second round. She was voted All-SEC Second Team by the coaches in the conference and finished with a final ranking of No. 122 in the ITA singles rankings

Dekkers was named to the second team to round out the Tigers in the All-Louisiana honors. The newcomer from Kansas State was at the top of the singles lineup for the Tigers throughout the spring, where she earned eight wins. She went 12-11 with Teixidó Garcia at the No. 2 and 3 courts in doubles, the most wins by a pair for the Tigers this season.

She picked up three wins against ranked foes while playing at the top singles spot. Dekkers clinched a vital 4-2 win for LSU against No. 29 Alabama, taking down No. 51 Loudmilla Bencheikh at the No. 1 court in a lengthy 6-4, 0-6, 7-6(8) match. She was ranked No. 125 in the final ITA singles rankings of the year.

For more information on the LSU women’s tennis program follow the Tigers on X/Twitter @lsuwten , on Instagram @LSUWTen , and onwww.Facebook.com/lsuwten.

2024 LSWA All-Louisiana Awards
Player of the Year: Olga Bienzobas, Louisiana Tech
Newcomer of the Year: Arina Gamretkaia, McNeese
Freshman of the Year: Amira Bergaoui, Xavier
Coach of the Year: Alan Green, Xavier

First Team
Anita Sahdiieva | LSU | Jr. | Khmelnystyi, Ukraine
Olga Bienzobas | Louisiana Tech | Sr. | San Sebatian, Spain
Aran Teixidó Garcia | LSU | Gr. | Lleida, Spain
Arina Gamretkaia | McNeese | Jr. | Chisinau, Moldova
Laurie Barendse | New Orleans | So. | Pijnacker, Netherlands
Mbali Langa | Xavier | Sr. | Johannesburg, South Africa

Second Team
Lucy Carpenter | Loyola | Sr. | Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.
Amira Bergaoui | Xavier | Fr. | Tunis, Tunisia
Olivia Scattini | LSUA | Sr. | Concordia, Entre Rios, Argentina
Kyra Akinnibi | Xavier | 5^th Yr. | London, England
Anastasija Adeikyte | McNeese | Fr. | Vilnus, Lithuania
Florentine Dekkers | LSU | Jr. | Ammerzonden, Netherlands

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