The Chattanooga Mocs women’s tennis team has two big matches on the schedule this weekend. UTC hosts Western Kentucky on Friday, March 27, and Furman on Sunday, March 29, both at the UTC Tennis Courts.
The Mocs are 12-2 overall and 1-0 in Southern Conference action. The match against the Lady Toppers is the last non-conference action of the season for UTC.
UTC is trying to extend its current five-match winning streak. On the cover of this preview is freshman Samantha Caswell.
The Chattanooga, Tenn., native is 17-6 in singles, including a 10-4 record at No. 4 in the spring. She and junior Kayla Jones are 12-1 at No. 1 doubles.
WKU is 6-7 and 1-1 in Conference USA play. Andrea Christopoulou leads the team with a 10-3 singles record, including a 5-2 record at No. 3. She and Emilia Granstrom make up the No. 1 doubles tandem with a 6-1 mark in the spring. Christopoulou defeated junior Alison Storie (6-2, 6-1) at the ITA Ohio Valley Regional Championships in the fall.
The Mocs are 5-0 all-time against Western Kentucky. This is the first meeting between these two teams since a 6-1 win on March 29, 2009, in Chattanooga.
Sunday’s match against Furman is a big one in the SoCon race. The Paladins are 4-10 overall, with four losses against ranked opponents. Furman enters the weekend against Samford on Saturday for its first league match of the spring.
Furman spent the first three weeks of the spring ranked as high as No. 60 in the ITA top 75. The Paladins are led by Ansley Speaks. She is 8-4 at No. 1 and on a six-match winning streak.
Furman has been a long-time nemesis for UTC. The Mocs have lost 24 in a row to the Paladins with the last win coming on April 5, 1997, in Greenville, S.C. The last four matches have all gone down to the wire, with Furman winning each 4-3.
Be sure to check the women’s tennis schedule page on GoMocs.com for links to live scoring for both matches this weekend.