JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn — The Carson-Newman women's tennis team (5-4, 3-2 SAC) will be back at the Carson-Newman Tennis Complex again this weekend as they play host to conference rivals Newberry (13-4, 4-2 SAC) on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and Queens (7-1, 2-1 SAc) on Sunday at 1 p.m.
"These conference matches will be tough as we have injuries to three of our top women," coach Jean Love said looking ahead to this weekend.
Jill Corsato-Owisianka (Germany), Sydney Ledington (Corbin, Ky), and Haleigh Chastain (Knoxville, Tenn) have all suffered injuries as of late. The three women all compete in singles play for the Eagles. If they cannot go, look for players such as Catherine Cook (Morristown, Tenn) and Jessica Edds (Gate City, Va) to step up and fill the roles.
Newberry, who is coming off a 6-3 win against Anderson, currently resides fifth in the South Atlantic Conference standings. Despite only two conferences losses, the Wolves find themselves in the middle of a cluster of highly talented teams this year in conference play. One thing the Eagles will have to be aware of is Vanessa Ortiz. The junior preseason all conference selection owns an 8-8 record in singles play.
Queens then rolls into Mossy Creek on Saturday, hoping to pick up their fifth victory on the road this season. Coming off an impressive 6-3 win over conference leading Wingate this week, the Royals are looking to glide their way into the sixth spot in the standings. To do so, they will be highly reliant on Melissa Laing, who is 15-2 this season in singles. They are also dependent on Claire Hamilton and Jaclyn Rock who are a striking 15-3 in doubles play.
The Eagles will need to continue to compete hard in these matches in order to come out on top, especially considering the injuries they are dealing with.
"We will give it all we got," Love said. "The effort has been there all season and you never know what will happen."
For complete recaps of all Carson-Newman tennis matches, go to cneagles.com for all details.
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