Golden Eagles head to Knoxville for Saturday tilt with the University of Tennessee
Its back on the road for the Tennessee Tech tennis team as the Golden Eagles scoot over to Knoxville Saturday afternoon for a matchup with the University of Tennessee at 4 p.m. CT.
By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Its back on the road for the Tennessee Tech tennis team as the Golden Eagles scoot over to Knoxville Saturday afternoon for a matchup with the University of Tennessee at 4 p.m. CT. The tilt with the Vols (5-3) will make it four of the first five on the away from Cookeville for Tech (2-2), with the Golden Eagles hoping to remain perfect against the Volunteer State after registering wins against Lipcsomb and Chattanooga already this season.
TTU kicked off its home slate with a bang on Feb. 18, rolling past Chattanooga, 6-1, in the squad's 2016 home opener. The Golden Eagles took care of business in doubles action, notching wins in the top two spots to clinch the doubles point, before mirroring a similar showing in singles play with wins in five of the six singles matches.
Freshman Guillermo Nicolas, sophomore Eduardo Mena, and junior Alberto Esteban each checked the singles and doubles win column, a common trend for the trio who have combined to go 9-3 in singles action and 8-4 in doubles play this year.
Mena boasts the best singles mark for the Golden Eagles with a perfect 4-0 record, while Mena and Esteban's 3-1 doubles record is tops on Tech as well.
After winning its first five matches of 2016, Tennessee has come up empty in its last three affairs with a loss against Duke, and a pair of defeats at the hands of Wake Forest.
Youth has proven to be a theme for the Vols this year with a roster that contains a combined eight freshman or sophomores, zero seniors, and only two juniors. In fact, freshman Timo Stodder and sophomore Luis Valero are deadlocked for the team lead in singles wins with five a piece, while freshman Jack Heslin and sophomore Preston Touliatos have set the bar in doubles action with six wins each.
The Vols have controlled the all-time series with Tech, seizing all 12 previous meetings.
Before hooking up with the Golden Eagles, Tennessee will clash with Georgia Tech earlier in the day, squaring off with the Yellow Jackets at 12 p.m. CT.
