JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Looking to continue their perfect start to SAC play in 2022, Carson-Newman women's tennis (10-2, 4-0 SAC) played host to their east Tennessee rival, no. 26 LMU, on Tuesday. The Eagles were looking for their first home victory over the Railsplitters in five years, as they were able to secure the 6-1 decision and remain unblemished in conference action.
With the win, C-N now holds double-digit wins in a spring season. The last home victory prior to Tuesday's win for C-N came back in March 2017 when the Eagles would win 6-3 in Mossy Creek.
Tuesday got started off early for C-N as they gained the much needed doubles point and were ahead 1-0 heading into singles play.
The Eagles got on the board first as Ana Carla Resende (Minas Gerais, Brazil) and Summer Reeves (Maidstone, Kent, England) took home the 6-3 win from number two doubles. The Eagles were in a prime spot to sweep doubles, but stumbled at number one as LMU shifted the momentum in their favor.
In their normal placement, Hannah Price (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Natasha Forrest (Jersey, United Kingdom) played number one singles on Tuesday. The duo were unable to gain the victory as they fell 4-6 as the doubles point and 1-0 advantage came down to the number three position.
Finally, in number three doubles, Violetta Khisamova (Yaroslavl, Russia) and Julia Speiser played their hearts out to gain the momentum back for C-N and push the Eagles ahead 1-0 on the scoreboard. In one of the day's most tightly contested matches, it was in fact C-N who gained the advantage after Khisamova/Speiser won 7-5.
"Every match for us from now until the rest of the season is important," head coach Jim Frederick said. "We need to battle every match and not just assume we are better even if we feel like we are. It shows our talent if we can handle the no. 26 team in the nation on our home courts."
Singles competition saw the Eagles claim five of the six matches, as they suffered a setback in number two singles. Since both men's and women's program competed at the same time, the teams started off singles with matches in number two, four, and six singles before moving onto number one, three, and five position.
The Eagles would see Hannah Price build the lead to 2-0 for the Eagles after winning 6-0, 6-0 at number four singles. Price continues to be a vocal and strong leader for the program as she cements her legacy for CNWT.
Then, Anita Chornei (Kyiv, Ukraine) was in action at number six singles. The junior has been able to hold her own as she returned to the program after a year off. Tuesday seemed no different as the Ukraine native made it 3-0 for C-N with a 6-4, 6-2 win at number six.
The one misstep in C-N not claiming a clean sweep came from number two singles as the visiting Railsplitters would pull out a two-set victory over C-N's Summer Reeves by scores of 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
"For us to only drop one match against a team like LMU shows how deep our girls can be this year," Frederick said. "It shows how important every match is and I'm excited to see how today's performance reflects in the next national poll release."
The lead grew to 4-1 for C-N as senior Ana Carla Resende (Minas Gerais, Brazil) stepped up and handled her own in the number one position. The Brazil native continued to mark her C-N legacy as she would win 6-1, 6-1 Tuesday.
The wins kept rolling in for C-N as number three singles would finish next as it would be Violetta Khisamova claiming another win for the Eagles, making it 5-1. As she came out on top by scores of 6-0, 6-3, the sophomore is once again proving how talented she is against SAC foes.
The day finished off strong for the Eagles as Natasha Forrest closed out the 6-1 team win. Playing a eight-game superset, the England native battled hard for every point as she would emerge victorious 8-6 and close out C-N's first win over their rival since 2017.
"Saturday is a big match for both our teams so we know we need to prepare and play our best." Frederick said. "Yes, it's nice to gain a win like today but we now need to shift our focus and be ready for a talented L-R program."
The Eagles will look to continue their hot streak in SAC play as they hit the road for a Saturday afternoon matchup with the UVA Wise Highland Cavaliers on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. from the metropolis of Wise, Va.
Be sure to keep up with all things Carson-Newman men's tennis via cneagles.com and on all social media accounts.
