MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women’s tennis team kicks off their spring campaign against Sun Belt Conference foe Louisiana at Lafayette and McNeese State in back-to-back matches Saturday and Sunday in Lafayette, La.

Both matches are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. at Cajun Courts on ULL’s campus.

“We’re starting straight off the bat with a conference match against Louisiana at Lafayette who’s one of the stronger teams in the conference,” said USA head coach Jaco Keyser. “It will give us a good indication of where we stand in the conference. We have quite a few new players. I’m interested to see how they respond. I’m basically throwing them in the deep end so we can see where we’re at.”

The Jaguars lead the all-time series with both Louisiana at Lafayette (21-3) and McNeese state (1-0). South Alabama saw action against the Ragin’ Cajuns and the Cowgirls this fall at the UL Invitational.

USA returns four players from last year’s squad: Katie Welch (Mobile, Ala.), Alina Volman (Lugansk, Ukraine), Chane Hines (Johannesburg, South Africa) and Jess Courtnell (Newcastle, England).

Welch, South Alabama’s only senior, did not compete in this year’s fall tournaments due to a knee injury.
In singles Welch went 9-8 overall in the 2009-10 season from the No. 1 and No. 2 spots.

This fall juniors Volman and Hines brought home a combined five singles wins and paired up to go 2-2 in doubles action.

Sophomore Courtnell went 0-2 at the 2010 USTA/ITA Regional Championships.

The Jags’ newcomers include Julia Ivanova, a freshman from Bourgas, Bulgaria, and Anna Davidson, a sophomore from Arab, Ala. Sophomore Bridgette Gale (St. Augustine, Fla.) also joined the team this year and competed for the Jaguars in two tournaments this fall.

Gale posted a 1-3 mark in singles and a 1-2 mark in doubles in her fall run.

“As a team, our main goal is just to create a culture of competitive, hard working athletes and hopefully results will come along,” said Keyser. “We just want them to go out there and play hard and be competitive. Starting off we’re going to be trying to find spots for people. Everyone is basically the same level so as we go along hopefully someone will rise to the top.”

The Jags will return home to host Lamar University on Feb. 26 at 11 a.m. Admission to all home matches is free.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

-USA-