WVU Opens Spring Slate With Back-To-Back Matches
January 20, 2017 10:41 AM | Tennis
MORGANTOWN, W.Va – The West Virginia University tennis team opens the 2017 season with a swing through Pennsylvania, taking on rival Pitt on Saturday, Jan. 21, and Penn State on Sunday, Jan. 22.
The 36th edition of the Backyard Brawl marks the third year in the row that the Mountaineers will open the season against Pitt. The match will be held at the Alpha Tennis and Fitness Club in Pittsburgh, and is set to start at 10 a.m. ET.
On Sunday, the Mountaineers will travel to State College, to take on the Nittany Lions of Penn State. The match will be held at the Sarni Tennis Center on the campus of Penn State.
“We are looking forward to the start of the spring season this weekend against Pitt and Penn State,” said fourth-year coach Miha Lisac. “We have been working throughout the fall and so far this spring to prepare for the spring campaign.”
Last season, the Panthers bested WVU 6-1, in Pittsburgh. Junior Habiba Shaker was the only Mountaineer to earn a win in both singles and doubles play. WVU owns a 28-6 all-time record against Pitt in a rivalry that stretches back to the program’s first year, 1974.
Sunday’s matchup will be the first time WVU and Penn State have met since the Mountaineers fell to the Nittany Lions 6-1 in 2014.
The Nittany Lions are 1-0 in 2017 after opening their spring schedule on Jan. 14, where they shut out Navy, 7-0. They will also compete on Saturday as they host the defending Atlantic 10 Champions, VCU.
Stats can be found on WVUSports.com following each match.
Keep up with West Virginia women’s tennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by following @WVUtennis.
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