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HomeSportsAPSU Women's Tennis hosts Tennessee State, Belmont this weekend

APSU Women’s Tennis hosts Tennessee State, Belmont this weekend

APSU Sports Information

APSU Women's TennisClarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University women’s tennis team returns to its home court to open Ohio Valley Conference play, 10:00am, Friday against Tennessee State and also host Belmont, 10:00am, Saturday.

Austin Peay Women's Tennis opens OVC play at home against Tennessee State and Belmont this weekend. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Women’s Tennis opens OVC play at home against Tennessee State and Belmont this weekend. (APSU Sports Information)

The Govs (3-5) have only played with five players in the majority of matches this season due to an injury to junior standout Claudia Yanes Garcia.

However, the Govs have still remained competitive in a lot of matches and are currently riding a two-match win streak, having defeated Kennesaw State on the road in their last match, March 4th.

The early season injury to Yanes Garcia has seen the emergence of freshman Fabienne Schmidt. Schmidt was moved up to No. 2 singles and elevated to No. 1 doubles from No. 3 doubles, partnering with Claudia’s twin sister, Lidia Yanes Garcia. Since the change, Schmidt is 5-2 in singles and 6-1 in doubles. Lidia was also moved up to No. 1 singles and is undefeated in singles since, with a 7-0 record.

The Govs have also gotten reliable and clutch performances from junior Helena Kuppig. Kuppig has mainly played at No. 3 singles this year, compiling a 5-2 record at the No. 3 position. More importantly, she has clinched the deciding point in two of Austin Peay’s three wins this season.

Opponent Spotlight

Tennessee State
The first opponent for the Govs is Tennessee State (10-2), an opponent the Govs have not lost to in this millennium. The Tigers are off to one of their best starts in program history, but lost their last outing to Detroit Mercy. However, Ana Albertson teamed with Kuppig to defeat a Tigers pairing in doubles this fall and Albertson and Schmidt also collected wins in singles against Tiger opponents in the fall.

In fact, dating back to the 2014-15 season, the Govs have won every individual match in dual and tournament play in both singles and doubles against the Tigers except two. Moreover, one of those two individual match wins for the Tigers came via forfeit.

Belmont
The Bruins (4-8) have not have the success in terms of overall record as Tennessee State, but they have won three of their last four matches. The Bruins and Govs have played four common opponents this year, with every result being the same except the Bruins’ victory over Dayton, who the Govs narrowly lost to. History favors the Govs in this matchup too, as APSU is 7-2 against the Bruins in their last nine meetings.

The Govs also went 4-0 in matches against Belmont opponents in singles and doubles this past fall.

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