Bennett, Esposito invited to American Collegiate Wildcard Playoffs

Tournament Page
by Riley Hubbard
Women's TennisWomen's Tennis
Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn senior DJ Bennett and junior Ava Esposito have been invited to participate in the American Collegiate Wildcard Playoffs as a doubles pairing, the United States Tennis Association announced Wednesday. Bennett and Esposito will be among four doubles teams competing in the event at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida, for a spot in the 2026 US Open.

Six wild card entries into the 2026 US Open (four singles, two doubles) will be awarded via the second-year playoff event. The winners of the four-player men’s and women’s singles playoffs and the four-team men’s and women’s doubles playoffs will earn US Open main draw wild cards, while the men’s and women’s singles finalists will earn US Open qualifying wild cards.

Players were automatically qualified based on reaching the finals of the NCAA Singles or Doubles Championships in the fall, and the remaining selections were made based on a number of criteria, including 2025-26 match record, ITA ranking, ATP/WTA ranking, professional and head-to-head results, and more.

Bennett and Esposito became the highest-ranked doubles team in program history on April 14 when they reached No. 2 in the nation. The pair was the regular duo at the top of the Auburn doubles lineup and went 17-4 in dual matches with eight ranked victories this season. Two of those wins came against top-10 opponents: Kayla Cross and Ella McDonald of LSU, and Sophia Webster and Celia-Belle Mohr of Vanderbilt.

The Auburn duo finished the season as the No. 3 doubles team in the nation, which earned them ITA doubles All-America honors.

Bennett has now been invited to the American Collegiate Wildcard Playoffs in two consecutive seasons after participating in both singles and doubles in 2025.

All singles and doubles matches will be played in a best-of-three-set format featuring regular scoring, with a 10-point tiebreak at 6-all in the third set. The event will be played June 16-18, with doubles matches scheduled for the final two days. Cracked Racquets will provide live streaming video of the event through its YouTube channel.