Tennis: Mountaineers Set to Start Fall Season
September 14, 2006 11:45 AM | General
September 14, 2006
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University women’s tennis team opens its fall 2006 season Sept. 15-17, as it competes in the Eastern Collegiate Invitational in West Point, N.Y.
The team’s first test of the season will be against a competitive field of 24 teams, including BIG EAST foes Connecticut, St. John’s and Pittsburgh.
The Mountaineers well be led by new head coach Marc Walters, a Morgantown native and former head coach of the men’s and women’s tennis teams at Barton College in Wilson, N.C. The coach brings to campus a 394-196 career coaching record and an excitement for Division I coaching.
“I can’t tell you how great it is to be back at home,” says Walters.
Walters will be at the helm of an experienced and talented squad that returns six letterwinners from a team that finished sixth in the BIG EAST championships and ended its spring season by winning eight of its last 10 matches.
The Mountaineers are led by seniors Ashley Constantine and Kelly Walsh. Constantine, who finished the spring season with a 2-1 record at the No. 3 doubles position with junior Colleen Speaker, will be paired with freshman Monique Burton for the invitational. Walsh, who finished the season strong with an undefeated run at the BIG EAST tournament (2-0), will be competing in the singles field.
Juniors Monica Lyskawa and Speaker will join Walsh in the singles flight. Lyskawa held the No. 2 singles spot throughout the spring season and finished with a 5-3 record. Speaker, an all-around player with strong potential, looks to build on the progress she achieved last spring. Freshmen Gabriela Blaskovicova and Stephanie LaFortune round out the singles field.
Joining Constantine and Burton in the doubles field will be the team of juniors Stacey Percival and Natalia Prinz. This powerful team finished the spring season with a 7-2 record at the No. 1 doubles position.
“There’s no doubt that there’s more talent on this team than there’s ever been in a West Virginia tennis uniform,” says Walters. “It’s clearly a gifted team.”
The Mountaineers will travel to College Park, Md., to participate in the Maryland Invite, September 22-24, 2006.
