photo by: Emma Crouch/Kansas Athletics

The Kansas tennis team gathers at the match against Wichita State on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Lawrence.

The Kansas tennis team has received an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament and will face South Carolina on Friday in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at a time yet to be announced.

This is KU’s seventh trip to the tournament under head coach Todd Chapman, as the Jayhawks return following a one-year absence. In 2023, they beat Charlotte in the opening round before falling to N.C. State. Chapman’s best season came in 2019, when KU won the Big 12 tournament, served as a host and advanced to the Sweet 16.

This time, the host is No. 5 North Carolina, which will take on VCU on Friday. Whoever emerges will face the KU-South Carolina winner on Saturday.

As of Monday, KU ranked No. 37 overall in the International Tennis Association’s ranking of the top 75 teams. The Jayhawks finished their regular season 13-10, including 7-6 in Big 12 Conference play, before taking down TCU but falling to top-seeded Texas Tech in the league tournament.

The Jayhawks’ resume included home victories over then-No. 26 Arizona State on March 7, then-No. 33 TCU on March 21 and then-No. 53 Kansas State in the regular-season finale on April 13. On the road, KU also beat then-No. 57 Iowa State on April 5 and then-No. 72 Colorado on March 2.

The doubles pairing of Gracie Mulville, who spent her first two collegiate seasons at South Carolina, and Heike Janse Van Vuuren ranks No. 26 in the country with a record of 24-10. Mulville, Van Vuuren and sophomore Kyoka Kubo have also been steady presences as the top three members of KU’s singles lineup.

South Carolina, which also has a 14-11 record, is led by No. 15 Sarah Hamner and No. 52 Kaitlyn Carnicella, who combine to form the No. 12 doubles pairing and each received SEC all-conference honors (Hamner on the first team, Carnicella on the second).

The winner of UNC’s four-team regional will advance to super regionals the following weekend. The women’s team championship begins May 15 in Waco, Texas.

This story will be updated.