HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky's women's tennis will start off the season against a nationally-ranked team, making the trip to Lexington, Kentucky, to take on No. 21 Kentucky. First serve against the Wildcats is slated for 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Jan. 24.
 
The Norse are a rising team and were picked to finish fifth in the Horizon League, their highest preseason ranking since moving to Division I. NKU returns Margita Sunjic for her sophomore season, who was named the 2017 Horizon League Player and Freshman of the Year, which earned her an invitation to the prestigious Oracle ITA Masters in September. While there, she recorded NKU's first victory over a ranked opponent with a 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 win over No. 108 Madara Straume of UNC Wilmington. Freshman Maria Koo also had a successful fall, winning the No. 2 singles draw at the Western & Southern Collegiate Invitational before picking up a pair of wins in the main singles draw of the ITA Ohio Valley Regional.
 
Kentucky's roster is headlined by No. 26 Akvile Paražinskaite, who was one of three Wildcats to be invited to the Oracle ITA National Fall Championships along with Justina Mikulskyte and Mami Adachi. The Wildcat roster features international flair, with just one member of the team hailing from the United States. NKU faced some of the Wildcats at the ITA Ohio Valley Regional in October, as Mikulskyte was the one to knock Koo out of the main singles draw while Emily Fanning and Isabel Iglesias Prieto took an 8-4 victory over Sunjic and Koo in the main doubles draw.
 
Wednesday's meeting will be the sixth all-time match against the Wildcats. Kentucky has won all six, with the last match being a 5-0 victory on Feb. 3, 2015.
 
For more information on NKU men's and women's tennis program, follow the team on Twitter @NKUNorseTennis or at facebook.com/nkunorsetennis.