JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A tough stretch of four matches in five days awaits the University of North Florida women's tennis team. The span, which starts on Saturday, includes two road matches and two home matches.
"The four matches are great for us, because to win the conference tournament, you have to play three tough matches in consecutive days," said head coach
Audra Cohen. "The purpose of this stretch is to simulate the conference tournament and give us the longevity to focus and the determination we will need to compete at our best. The level and location of each match is varied, so our team will have to adapt and create their own comfort zone with each match. Our focus is on improving our mentality with each match, so that we can become one of the most resilient UNF teams."
The Ospreys travel to USF on Saturday, return home against Jackson State on Sunday, head to Orlando on Tuesday for a neutral-site match with Furman and then conclude the stretch at home against George Washington on Wednesday.
Sunday's home match time against Jackson State has been moved up to 10 a.m., due to the Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Championship Game taking place at UNF Arena later that afternoon.
UNF is gotten off to a 4-2 start already this spring and has won its last four matches. However, all of the Ospreys' victories have been on their home court of the UNF Tennis Complex. Most recently, UNF comes off a 7-0 sweep of College of Charleston on Monday. As a result of her play against the Cougars,
Taylor Hollander earned UNF's second Atlantic Sun Women's Tennis Player of the Week honor on Wednesday. Hollander teamed up with
Marina Cunningham for a 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles and then claimed the match-winning point with a 6-4, 6-0 victory at No. 1 singles.
USF enters Saturday with a 2-6 record and plays its first home match in nearly two months with Saturday's contest against the Ospreys. UNF and USF have already faced each other this season with the Bulls taking a 4-1 win in the consolation match at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend. However, the Bulls have dropped their last two matches and have not won since defeating Florida Gulf Coast 5-2 on Feb. 10. The last three USF matches have finished in 5-2 scores.
Jackson State begins a Spring Break trip with Sunday's match at UNF and will play four matches in the Sunshine State. The Lady Tigers enter the match with a 3-7 record and began the spring on a six-match losing skid. However, Jackson State comes off a 3-1 weekend at last weekend's SWAC Round-Up.
Furman also begins a Sunshine State trip with a match against UNF, but Tuesday's match will take place on neutral courts at the UCF Tennis Complex. So far this season, the Paladins are 2-7, but 1-0 against Atlantic Sun teams. Furman opened the spring with a 7-0 sweep of USC Upstate, but then dropped its next seven matches. The Paladins come off a 4-3 victory over UNC Wilmington on Saturday.
George Washington kicks off a seven-match road swing on Sunday at No. 5 Virginia before traveling to UNF on Wednesday. The Colonials begin their road stretch with a 4-3 record and have already faced a nationally-ranked team in No. 46 Harvard on Feb. 22.
Admission is free to all matches taking place at the UNF Tennis Complex.
