Tennis: WVU Travels to Penn State
February 29, 2008 03:50 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
February 28, 2008
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The West Virginia University tennis team heads to Penn State on Friday, Feb. 29, for a non-conference match against the Nittany Lions (2-5, 1-1 Big Ten).
WVU follows with a match against the Columbia Lions (2-3) on Saturday, March 1, in University Park, Pa.
The Mountaineers (4-2, 0-1 BIG EAST) were riding a three-match winning streak until falling to BIG EAST rival Pitt, 4-3, in their last match.
WVU is off to its best start since the 2004-05 season, and has been steady in singles play throughout the season. Senior Monica Lyskawa is 7-3 overall, and is coming off wins in singles and doubles competition against Pitt.
Senior Natalia Prinz has gotten off to a solid start in singles, going 4-2 to help pace the Mountaineers at the No. 3 spot.
Junior Colleen Speaker looks to continue her form at No. 4 singles as she also shows a 4-2 mark. The Morgantown native has been a mainstay at the position all season and has provided consistency to help contribute to WVU’s overall performance in singles competition.
The doubles point will be critical for the Mountaineers in their back-to-back slate this weekend. Lyskawa and Stephanie LaFortune remain WVU’s only undefeated tandem with a 2-0 record in No. 2 singles, and are coming off an 8-2 victory against Pitt in which they garnered the team’s only doubles win.
WVU will look to avenge last season’s loss against Penn State, and faces Columbia for the first time since its 5-2 victory against the Lions in 1996.
WVU Head Coach Marc Walters feels that his team’s performance this weekend can help generate momentum and regain their edge in BIG EAST play.
“We want to use this weekend as a springboard to get ready for the Cincinnati-Seton Hall weekend,” says Walters. “Getting these non-conference wins are critical for us as we face conference play and try to position ourselves for the BIG EAST tournament.”
