JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman women's tennis team (0-1) searches for its first win of the spring season on Thursday against another ranked squad, No. 15 Union (1-1).
Despite losing to No. 11 North Georgia, the Eagles saw contributions from freshman Suryanshi_, who secured a singles win in her Eagles debut.
"What I saw from Suryanshi was a competitor I hadn't seen," Parker said. "She's like our diamond in the rough… Her enthusiasm was perfect. She played within herself, using her intelligence and being able to analyze her emotions and what was happening around her."
The Eagles will look to replicate the freshman's enthusiasm and competitiveness throughout the lineup on Thursday against a formidable foe in the Bulldogs. Opening the season with a loss against Division One opponent Eastern Kentucky, the Bulldogs bounced back with a clean sweep of Truett McConnell.
Liliana Drukerova headlines Union, playing the No. 1 spot in both singles and doubles. Drukerova opened the spring with an impressive three-set tiebreaker win in No. 1 singles at Eastern Kentucky. The Eagles will rely on all-conference selection Anita Chornei to put together a competitive showing against the Bulldogs' top player.
Five of the Eagles' six singles starters are looking for their first wins, but Parker believes his team is right there and can swing some of the competitive results in their direction.
"We stayed pretty competitive in our first match," Parker said. "For some of our incoming players, it was really tough… With a match under our belt and going into our match against Union, it'll come a little easier to them."
In doubles, two of the three pairings for the Eagles opened the season against ranked duos. Being battle-tested early on can benefit C-N on Thursday, taking on the three duos for Union that are all coming off wins in their last match.
The Eagles and the Bulldogs take the court on Thursday, starting at 10 am.
