FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU women's tennis team (3-4) will look to keep its momentum from Monday night's 6-1 win over Western Michigan as this time the Eagles welcome Michigan State for dual play Friday afternoon at 1 p.m.

"The ladies are excited to compete tomorrow," said head coach Courtney Vernon. "They are growing every day and tomorrow is another opportunity to continue to grow."

Overall in singles dual play, FGCU has notched 22 wins led by sophomore Maja Ornberg (Kil, Sweden/De la Gardiegymnasiet, Lidkoping) who is now 5-2 in dual action after Monday's three-setter win (3-6, 6-2, 6-4). Playing in the No.1 spot as of lately, Ornberg's record in that slot is 2-0, while she's 3-2 in the No. 2 spot.

The tandem of Laura Falceto Font Font (Zaragoza, Spain/El Pilar Maristas Zaragoza)  and Julianna Curtis (West Des Moines, Iowa/Allendale Academy) have swung the way in doubles for FGCU, posting a 2-0 record this spring.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
MSU comes into tomorrow's match with an 8-3 record after dropping its match last night against USF in Tampa, Fla., 4-3. The Spartans in East Lansing, Mich., are 6-0 while on the road they are now 1-3.

In singles play, Davina Nguyen 7-1 overall, seeing the most playing time in the No. 4 spot, while two other Spartans boast 6-2 records.

On the doubles side, Emily Metcalf and Nguyen have yet to falter, going 8-0 out of the No. 1 spot. In total dual play, MSU has claimed 36 singles victories to go along with 20 in doubles.

PRESEASON FAVORITES
The reigning regular season champions, the FGCU women finished the poll with 44 points matching the reigning ASUN Tournament champions UNF. However, the Ospreys received four first-place votes while the Eagles received three. FGCU and UNF finished the regular season as the top two teams and met in the tournament final, with the Ospreys narrowly defeating the Eagles 4-3.

Stetson (32 points) is expected to finish third according to the preseason poll, just ahead of Lipscomb (29). NJIT (25), Kennesaw State (14), and USC Upstate (8) round out the preseason poll.

LAST TIME OUT
The momentum shifted in favor of the Eagles after the pairing of Font and Curtis claimed the first doubles match in a 6-2 convincing fashion.  Soon after, the tandem of Sofia Perez (Alajuela, Costa Rica/Florida Virtual School) and Patricia Villar (Logrono, Spain/Bachillerato Santa Maria/Louisiana Monroe) clinched the doubles point for the Eagles as the duo came out on top 6-4.

Bridget Forster (Boca Raton, Fla./Florida Virtual School) snagged the first singles win on court five defeating WMU's Jeryn Jack 6-0, 6-2, while just minutes later Villar wrapped up her match, 6-0, 6-1, ballooning the Green and Blue's lead to 3-0. With only four courts still in action, newcomer Madison Gallegos (Denver, Colo./Colorado Connections Academy) sealed the win for FGCU, clinching on court four 6-3, 6-2. Both teams would continue to play out the rest of the matches as the Eagles would garner the remaining two of three en route to the 6-1 victory.

UP NEXT
FGCU will round out its non-conference home slate Monday, Mar. 12 at 5 p.m. taking on Minnesota followed by the next day against Notre Dame also at 5 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-date coverage of FGCU women's tennis, follow us on Twitter @FGCU_WTEN and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available.

HEAD COACH COURTNEY VERNON
FGCU's women's tennis team is led by two-time ASUN Coach of the Year Courtney Vernon, whose fourth season under the helm saw the Eagles claim their first ASUN Championship in program history. She has mentored her student-athletes into earning 43 ASUN All-Conference and All-Academic honors, including the 2014, 2016 and 2017 ASUN Freshman of the Year as well as the 2016 and 2017 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Vernon has led the Green and Blue to a 54-38 overall record (.600) and 21-5 conference record (.808) in her four years at FGCU.