Marshall University Athletics
@Herd_Tennis Opens Dual Match Season Against Eastern Michigan
1/14/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall women's tennis team opens its dual match season Sunday morning when it takes on former Mid-American Conference foe Eastern Michigan at the Huntington Tennis Club. First serve is set for 11 a.m.
The match is the first of a four-match homestand for the Herd that features three Power 5 conference teams. Marshall will play against Kentucky (Jan. 18), Wisconsin (Jan. 21) and Minnesota (Jan. 28) during the homestand.
The match will be the 23rd between the Herd and Eagles. Marshall holds a 16-6 advantage in the series. The Herd has won the last 12 matches in the series. Eastern Michigan last beat Marshall in the 2001-02 season.
HAVE YOU HERD?
Marshall went 11-11 in the 2015-16 dual match season, recording double-digit wins for the 21st consecutive season. The last time the Herd had less than ten wins in a season was the 1994-95 season when the Herd was 8-15. Marshall returns each of its top five players from last season, including 2016 Conference USA Player of the Year and ITA Atlantic Region Most Improved Player Derya Turhan. Turhan teamed with Anna Pomyatinskaya to finish second in the doubles bracket of the ITA Atlantic Regional and was the singles runner up at the ITA Atlantic Regional. Turhan and Maddie Silver won singles flights in the Herd's last tournament at the CofC Classic in Charleston, S.C. Turhan was named the Conference USA Women's Tennis Athlete of the Month for November following her singles flight win at the CofC Classic.
Last year, the Herd defeated a pair of ranked opponents in Yale and Old Dominion. Marshall earned the fifth seed in the Conference USA tournament and reached the quarterfinals before being knocked out by Old Dominion.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Eastern Michigan is 0-1 this season following a 4-3 loss at Youngstown State on Friday. The Eagles went 5-16 last season and failed to make the Mid-American Conference tournament after reaching the final in 2014. The Eagles went 2-6 in MAC play last season. Eastern Michigan returns seven of its top eight players from last year, led by Anna Veleva, who compiled a 9-12 dual match record playing out of the Nos. 4 and 5 spots. The Eagles did not have a player record a winning record in dual matches or tournament matches last year. Eastern Michigan was picked to finish ninth in the Mid-American Conference this season.
#STAMPEDE16
For the latest information on Marshall women's tennis, follow @Herd_Tennis on Twitter, @herdtennis on Instagram and Herd Tennis on Facebook.
UP NEXT
The Herd continues its four-match homestand to open the season Wednesday night when it takes on the Kentucky Wildcats. First serve is set for 6 p.m.
