American tennis player Jessica Pegula may be "Down Under" at the moment, but her heart is still very much in her hometown of Buffalo, N.Y.
Pegula, the daughter of Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula, advanced to the fourth round of the famed grand slam tournament on Friday. Following her match, she offered some words of encouragement to the team ahead of Sunday night's highly anticipated AFC Divisional Round matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs.
After dispatching Spain's Nuria Parrizas Diaz in the Round of 32, Pegula left a three-word rally cry for the Bills on a court camera.
"Bills you're next :)," she wrote on an on-court camera lens, in blue marker.
The cool gesture wasn't Pegula's first show of support for her favorite team while in Australia. Earlier this week, she took to Twitter to call attention to her Bills-themed court attire.
Pegula, 27, entered the Open as the 18th-ranked singles player on the women's tour.
Last year was, arguably, her best as a professional, including her first career quarterfinals appearance in a grand slam at the Australian Open. She was felled by eventual runner-up Jennifer Brady in Melbourne, and later reached the semifinals of the U.S. Open in mixed doubles with partner Austin Krajicek, where they lost to eventual winners Desirae Krawczyk and Joe Salisbury.
Pegula's parents purchased the Sabres in 2011, and later added the Bills to their portfolio of sports and entertainment ventures in 2014.
Kickoff against the Chiefs is set for 6:35 p.m. EST on Sunday night.
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