Rusmila Afshin | PantherNOW
The FIU women’s tennis team powered through the 2025 Conference USA Championship in dominant fashion this week, capturing their third consecutive title and fourth overall under head coach Katarina Petrovic.
The No. 55-ranked Panthers went undefeated through the tournament, with victories over New Mexico State, Liberty, and Louisiana Tech to secure the title and punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth straight year.
FIU began their title defense by eliminating New Mexico State 4-0 at the Liberty Tennis Complex.
The Panther doubles team of Valery Gynina and Ekaterina Khairutdinova started the match by winning 6-2 at No. 2 doubles for the team’s first victory.
Gynina gave the team its first singles win by defeating her opponent 6-1, 6-1.
With the match score 3-0 in FIU’s favor, Petja Drame secured the clinch and sweep with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.
The Panthers then faced 5th-seeded Liberty in the semifinals and beat them 4-0 to earn a trip to the conference final.
The Panthers secured their first point of the match after Oyinlomo Quadre and Katerina Mandelikova won at the first doubles position 6-3 score followed by Gynina and Khairutdinova’s 6-2 victory.
Khairutdinova won her singles match by scores of 6-2, 6-2.Aleksandra Simeva and Quadre finished the match with their 6-1, 6-4 victory while Quadre battled back to clinch a 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 win at the second position.
In the championship round, FIU faced Louisiana Tech.
The Panthers fell behind for the first time in the tournament after losing the doubles point at the start of their match.
The team improved after that as Valery Gynina continued her unbeaten streak by bringing the score to 1-1 with her singles victory .
At No. 2 Quadre secured the victory with a solid 6-3, 6-2 win after Gynina had finished her earlier 6-2, 6-1 to give FIU the lead.
Both Panthers achieved consecutive singles victories which secured the contest 4-1 and earned yet another CUSA championship.
FIU won its third straight CUSA title (2023, 2024, 2025), becoming one of only four programs in Conference USA history to do so, along with Rice (2013–17), Tulsa (2007–09), and Tulane (2003–05).
The Panthers demonstrated strong play in all three matches, with solid teamwork throughout. Their determination in the final against Louisiana Tech and consistent performance during the tournament highlight their potential to compete at the highest level of college tennis.
After winning the conference, the Panthers move on to the NCAA Tournament as they aim to carry their success to the national stage.
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