ITHACA, N.Y. — The women's tennis team starts Ivy League play at 1 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Columbia at Reis Tennis Center.
 
Cornell enters its championship season with a 6-9 record and armed with a three-match winning streak. Most recently, the Big Red topped Siena, 6-1, and Marist, 7-0, in doubleheader on March 16 at Reis. Freshman Valerie Ho has won three consecutive singles matches from the middle positions in the order to take over the team lead in singles victories with a 7-6 record. Classmate Sarah Campbell is 6-5 from position lower in the singles order, and she is 4-7 in doubles to join freshman Maria Adiaconitei (4-6) for most doubles victories.
 
With the exception of senior captain Mariko Iinuma, the Big Red's roster has been completely overhauled since it won the program's first Ivy League title in 2017. Cornell was 1-6 in Ancient Eight competition last year, with the one victory coming in the final weekend against Yale.
 
Columbia (11-1) is ranked 34th in the nation by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association and on an 11-match winning streak that's tied the program record. The Lions' only loss to date came in its dual-match opener against Syracuse, and Columbia has most recently secured victories over UNLV and UTSA in a March 21-22 trip to Las Vegas, Nevada.
 
Jennifer Kerr is 5-4 while typically competing at the No. 1 position in singles, though Columbia is a combined 21-2 from the Nos. 2 and 3 spots. Akanksha Bhan (8-2) and Christie Wan (7-0) head those efforts, typically followed by Melissa Sakar (9-2). The Lions are 14-12 overall in doubles, with Kerr and Hu boasting a 5-2 mark from the lower two positions.
 
The Lions won last year's meeting between the two teams, 6-1, to take a 21-20 lead in the all-time series. The lone Cornell point came from a No. 5 singles victory from Madison Stevens '18.
 
Saturday's match is open to the public and free to attend.