March 7, 2013

UCF at #25 Memphis The Racquet Club of Memphis Friday 2 p.m.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The No. 25 University of Memphis women's tennis team (7-4) begins their eight-match homestand Friday with a 2 p.m. matchup against conference foe UCF (7-4) at The Racquet Club of Memphis.

The Lady Tigers are playing at home for the first time in two weeks after trips to Nashville and Tempe, Ariz. Memphis compiled a 1-2 record during its road swing with losses to No. 12 Vanderbilt and No. 21 Arizona State, while picking up their fourth win over a ranked opponent with a 4-2 victory over No. 44 Saint Mary's last Sunday.

The Lady Tigers are looking for their first win in school history over the Knights as UCF holds a 7-0 series mark against Memphis. The U of M last faced UCF in 2011 with the Knights edging the Lady Tigers by a score of 4-3 in Orlando. This will be just the second time the teams have squared off in Memphis.

"UCF is a good team, and historically you can see we have struggled against them a lot," said head coach Lee Taylor Walker. "If our team picks up where we left off, we should have no problems. But, UCF is not an opponent we can overlook. I am relying heavily on our senior leadership for us to be prepared."

Scouting the Knights

UCF brings a 7-4 record into the Bluff City with Memphis being the Knights' first Conference USA opponent of the season. UCF has suffered losses to No. 5 Florida, No. 16 Florida State, No. 52 Georgia State and No. 70 South Florida. The Knights have won two of their last three matches with wins over Florida Gulf Coast (7-0) and North Florida (4-3). UCF is led by Genevieve Lorbergs, who is 8-3 in dual matches this season at No. 1. Josephine Haraldson has been a solid No. 3 player for the Knights with an 8-3 mark while Caroline Eberhart is 5-0 in the No. 5 spot.

Memphis in the Rankings
Memphis received its highest ranking in school history on Feb. 26 when the Lady Tigers came in at No. 22 in the nation after jumping 17 spots in the poll. After a 5-2 loss to No. 12 Vanderbilt, Memphis ranked No. 25 in the Mar. 5 poll.

Courtney Collins jumped 38 spots to No. 23 in singles on Feb. 26 after a win over a top-15 opponent. Collins also ranks in doubles with Kelly Gray at No. 58 in the nation.

Upcoming Matches
Memphis will face Saint Louis and Murray State on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.

Record Watch
Collins is currently fifth in career singles wins at the University of Memphis with an 85-40 record coming into Friday's match. Collins needs just 13 more victories to break Stacy Seamans' (1979-83) record of 97.

In doubles, Gray is fifth in the school record books with 73 career wins while Collins has tallied 72 during her career for sixth.

Connect with the Lady Tigers
Fans can follow the Memphis women's tennis team on Twitter @UofMTennis and also like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MemphisWomensTennis.