DELAND, Fla. – The FGCU women's tennis team (7-7, 2-1 ASUN) will be on the road for the first time in over a month as the Eagles travel to DeLand to face Stetson Saturday morning at 10 a.m.
Live stats can be viewed
here.
Last Time Out
FGCU dominated at home, taking down NJIT by a score of 6-1. The Green and Blue came away with the doubles point taking courts No. 2 and No. 3 with a pair of 6-4 sets. From there, the Eagles were able to claim five straight matches as the only loss came on the final court. Junior
Maja Ornberg (Kil, Sweden/De la Gardiegymnasiet, Lidkoping) clinched it for FGCU on the top court, producing a 6-4, 6-4 win. She is currently 9-5 overall on the top court while going 3-0 in ASUN action.
ASUN Preseason Poll
The back-to-back ASUN regular-season champion Eagles collected 52 points and one first-place vote in the ASUN Coaches Poll released back in January. Atop the poll, conference newcomer Liberty and UNF each garnered 57 points apiece for a first-place tie. The Ospreys came away with four first-place votes compared to the Flames' three.
Lipscomb (37) was selected to finish fourth in the poll, ahead of Stetson (35) and NJIT (24). Kennesaw State (18) and the ASUN's second newcomer team this year North Alabama (8) rounded out the poll.
Scouting the Hatters
Stetson is 9-6 overall but currently are on a two-match losing streak after dropping its first pair of ASUN matches to NJIT and UNF. Sophomore Danel Ashirova is the Hatters' top singles players and boasts a 9-6 record on the top court. Meanwhile, sophomore Brooke Milner is 8-2 in her last 10 outings, playing primarily out of the No. 2 position where she is 11-3 overall.
In doubles, Ashirova and junior Lucie Renault own an 8-5 record on court No. 1 while sophomore Vicky Geurinckx and Milner have posted four wins on court No. 2.
Despite trailing the all-time series 8-7 versus the Hatters, the Eagles have come out on top the last seven of eight matches.
ASUN Success
The Eagles continue to march ahead under the guidance of head coach
Courtney Vernon in her sixth season at the helm. A three-time ASUN Coach of the Year, the Green and Blue have posted a 29-6 record over conference foes under Vernon.
Up Next
FGCU will play two matches in three days facing North Alabama (1-5, 0-2 ASUN) on Apr. 4 and then turnaround and head to Lipscomb (12-3, 1-0 ASUN) for a noon match on Apr. 6.
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 three-time ASUN Coach of the Year Courtney Vernon, who led the Eagles to back-to-back ASUN regular-season crowns in her fifth season in 2018. She has mentored her student-athletes into earning 56 ASUN All-Conference and All-Academic honors, including 2014, 2016 and 2017 ASUN Freshman of the Year as well as the 2016 and 2017 Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the 2018 Player of the Year. Vernon has led the Green and Blue to a 68-49 overall record (.581) and 29-6 conference record (.829) in her six years at FGCU.
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 75 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 35 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the Spring, 2018 and had an ASUN Conference and State of Florida best five teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours – being recognized as one of two runner-ups for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
