MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women’s tennis team continues their homestand when they host Xavier of Louisiana on Saturday at 11 a.m. and Middle Tennessee State on Sunday at 10 a.m. on the Bruce David Lubel Memorial Tennis Courts.
Saturday will mark the second meeting of USA and Xavier. The Jaguars lead the all-time series with the Gold Nuggets 1-0.
“We played Xavier last year,” said USA head coach Jaco Keyser. “They’re a strong NAIA team. But the main goal right now is just to get matches in and get into pressure situations and to keep getting experience and practice building towards April.”
South Alabama (1-0) enters the weekend after defeating Nicholls State 6-1 on Thursday, and dropped only one singles match in the win.
Xavier dropped their match to Tulane on Jan. 29 7-0, and will be competing against New Orleans today (Friday).
The Jaguars dominated the bottom part of the lineup Thursday, dropping just five games total at flights 4-6. Freshmen Mary Angela Martin (Mobile, Ala.) and Ramona Ghermani (Bad Wimpfen, Germany), and sophomore Emily Newton (Dothan, Ala.) each picked up wins in their first collegiate dual matches.
“Our match against Nicholls was a nice, strong match for the first of the season,” said Keyser. “Especially with four players, Nos. 3-6, playing in their first college match ever. I thought we hit the ground running. Even though there were some early nerves, they kind of settled in. The girls took what we’ve been doing in practice and implemented it into the match.”
The Jaguars take on the Blue Raiders of Middle Tennessee on Sunday, and lead the all-time series 17-2.
South Alabama won the first 17 meetings between the two teams, but have lost the last two matches. MTSU enters the match Sunday with a 1-1 record, after defeating UAB (5-2) and falling to Samford (4-3).
“Middle Tennessee is usually a pretty strong team,” said Keyser. “We’re just trying to forget about who we are playing each match and just focus on ourselves and our development and execution. We don’t want to worry or be bothered by who is on the other side of the net.”
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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