Eagles Look to Bounce Back in Pair of SAC Contests

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – After two tough contests with Catawba and Lee, Carson-Newman (4-4, 2-1 SAC) can bounce back, facing Anderson and Coker.

In last week's matches with Catawba and Lee, the Eagles couldn't overcome slow starts and dropped both matches to the quality opponents. With the bulk of the conference slate still left to play, the Eagles can improve their conference mark with a good showing this week.

Vs. Anderson (5-5, 1-4 SAC)

The Trojans started the season ranked No. 44, but they have not exactly had the start they were looking for early in the season.

Despite winning four of its first five matches, Anderson dropped three straight South Atlantic Conference contests to Lenoir-Rhyne, Lincoln Memorial, and Coker. The Trojans' lone conference win came against UVA-Wise on Saturday before dropping a match to Tusculum on Sunday.

In its first conference win over UVA-Wise, Anderson was clinical in doubles, taking all three matches to secure the point. In singles, despite winning four of the six matches, the Trojans' No. 1 singles player, Vincent Mico, did not finish the match due to injury.

Luckily for the Trojans, Mico returned the next day against Tusculum and secured AU's only point with a win in No. 1 singles. On Wednesday afternoon, Mico will be a formidable foe for the Eagles' Marnix Van Dalen.

A year ago, the Eagles dominated a top-20 Trojans team in the matchup, 6-1. In the match, Lars Hordijk and Marnix Van Dalen helped C-N earn the doubles point, while the two earned singles wins in addition to Marc Janse and Gjorgi Jankulovski to help the Eagles secure the win.

C-N will look for more of the same on Wednesday, hoping to earn its third SAC win of the season.

@ Coker (2-8, 1-3 SAC)

Despite the tough start to the season, the Cobras have been putting it together lately, earning their first SAC win over Anderson on Wednesday. Coker grabbed the doubles point by winning two of three matches, with the only loss coming in tiebreaker fashion in the No. 2 doubles spot. The Cobras won four of the six singles matches to clinch the win, 5-2.

Although they lost the next match, the Cobras were extremely competitive against league-leading Tusculum, losing 4-3. Coker won the double point, but the Pioneers used a late surge by winning No. 5 and 6 singles to stay unblemished in conference play.

The Eagles surrendered just one point in the matchup with the Cobras a season ago, sweeping doubles and winning five of six singles matches.

Despite the struggles from the Cobras this season, Coker has found decent success lately, and it will be a challenge for C-N on Saturday.

Two prime opportunities await the Eagles to improve their mark in South Atlantic Conference play, and it starts with Anderson in Jefferson City at 1 PM on Wednesday.

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