MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University women’s tennis team travels through the state of Virginia this weekend, as the team squares off against Liberty on Friday, Feb. 12, followed by a match against No. 47 Virginia Tech on Sunday, Feb. 14.

 

The match against the Lady Flames is set to begin at 2 p.m., at the Sports Racket, in Lynchburg, Virginia, while the match against the Hokies will begin at 10 a.m., at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center, in Blacksburg, Virginia.

 

“When we take steps forward in practice, we have to transfer that into matches, and that’s what we have to do this weekend,” said third-year coach Miha Lisac. “We still have a long way to go, but it is important that we show our progress throughout the matches this weekend. We have to continue to take steps forward and build off our accomplishments from the last couple of weeks.”

 

In its last weekend of competition, West Virginia improved to 3-1 with a 5-2 victory over Akron, on Feb. 7, at the LacTuchie Tennis Center. The Mountaineers posted their third consecutive win of the season, while handing the Zips their first loss of the season.

 

Sophomore Habiba Shaker holds a team-best 4-0 mark at the No. 2 singles slot, followed by freshman Paula Goetz (3-1) and sophomore Lyn Yuen Choo (3-1) at the No. 3 and No. 5 positions, respectively. Senior Hailey Barrett and Shaker also hold a 4-0 mark at the No. 1 doubles slot.

 

West Virginia and Liberty (2-3) will meet for the fifth time in program history. Currently, the series is knotted at two apiece with Liberty claiming the last two meetings. The last time the Mountaineers competed against the Lady Flames was during the 2014 dual-match season, when they fell to Liberty (6-1), on Jan. 25, at the Charleston Indoor Racquet Club. Friday’s contest will be the first time Liberty has hosted West Virginia.

 

“Liberty is a team that we have seen a couple of times since I have been here,” Lisac noted. “We saw them two years ago in a dual-match competition. We know them fairly well. They are a tough team who battles well. We have to be ready to play from start to finish. We have to play aggressively, and that starts with doubles. We are looking to take charge of the match from the beginning, so we do not have to battle from behind.”

 

Most recently, Liberty recorded a 6-1 victory over Elon on Feb. 6. The victory halted a three-match losing streak for the Lady Flames, as they improved their overall record against the Phoenix to 2-4.

 

Liberty is led by Evangeline Crist and Maria Khval with each of them holding a 3-2 record in singles action. The doubles squad is led by Valerie Thong and Crist with a record of 4-1. The doubles tandem entered the season ranked No. 8 in the Atlantic Region.

 

West Virginia is 4-18 all-time against Virginia Tech (4-1). The last time the Mountaineers competed against the Hokies was at the 2015 ITA Atlantic Regional in Lynchburg, Virginia, from Oct. 15-17. Two Mountaineers competed in the main singles draw, with Shaker suffering her first loss of the fall season to VT’s Francesca Fusinato in straight sets (6-4, 6-4). Barrett also dropped a three-set battle to VT’s Kelly Williford (1-6, 6-1, 6-4).

 

“Virginia Tech is a similar situation,” Lisac explained. “We played against two of their players in the fall, so we are familiar with their players as well. We know that they are a team who is going to come out ready to play. We want to have a very solid start in doubles, but at the same time, we want to incorporate a smarter approach. We are not just focused on playing fast and aggressive. We have to do the right things at the right time against Virginia Tech.”

 

In its last meeting against Virginia Tech, West Virginia fell short by a score of 5-2 in a neutral site match held at the Charleston Tennis Club, in Charleston, on March 2, 2013.

 

Most Recently, Virginia Tech bested UMBC by a score of 7-0 on Jan. 31. Virginia Tech’s match vs. UMBC was its second consecutive victory without giving up a match point to its opponent. It also was Virginia Tech’s third shutout of the season.

 

Virginia Tech is led by No. 113 Caroline Daxhelet and No. 41 Fusinato with each of them holding a 4-0 record in singles action. Ilinca Stoica and Elena Cerezo-Codina rank nationally at No. 94 and No. 106, respectively. The doubles squad is led by Fusinato and Williford, Codina and Daxhelet and Katherine Butler and Sansitha Nandakumar at two wins each. The doubles tandem of Cordina and Daxhelet entered the season ranked No. 10 in the Atlantic Region.

 

“We are looking forward to both matches this weekend,” Lisac said. “I think this weekend is going to be a good challenge for us to kind of gauge where we are and how much progress we have made thus far.”

 

Live results for Liberty can be found at WVUsports.com, and if a live scores link becomes available for Virginia Tech, it will be posted at WVUsports.com as well.

 

A recap will be available following each day of competition at WVUsports.com.