Men's Tennis | 1/15/2016 2:23:00 PM

STATESBORO, Ga.- After a two-month hiatus, the Georgia Southern men's tennis team starts up their spring season this weekend  in North Carolina. The Blue and White whip out their rackets once again on Saturday, taking on Davidson, and then on Sunday to face Gardner-Webb. Both matches are set for 1 p.m.

"I am very excited to see where we are as a team," head coach Sander Koning said. "We identify ourselves as competitors and this weekend will be the first test to show that."

This past fall, the Eagles faced Davidson in two tournaments—the Wolfpack Invitational in October and the Wake Forest Invite in November. Sophomore Eddie Landin took down Ricky Saad 6-3, 6-4 during the Wolfpack Invitational en route to the semi-finals while Rise Lanne and Christian Kerrigan took care of business against Saad and Jack Riazzi in doubles back in October.

At Wake Forest, Landin beat Jordan Hart of Davidson in straight sets while Kerrigan slipped past Alex Howard and Evan Watkins to win the consolation round. However, two Wildcats took revenge over the Eagles; J.B. Gough and Riazzi defeated freshman Andre Johnson and junior Nico de Groof in their respective singles matches.

This Sunday is the first time the Eagles and Garder-Webb go head-to-head this season.

QUOTABLES FROM COACH KONING
"We have had a solid eight days of practice before the start of this weekend. I was very happy to see that most of our guys came back in shape, and we could continue from where we left off. We have been playing a lot the last week and practices have been good. We added a new player, Jose Moya, to the roster and he has been adjusting well to our culture and what we are about here at Georgia Southern. We have a good mix of experience with six upperclassmen and four freshmen.
 
"I am expecting two good matches. These are the first two matches of the season and everybody is excited to go and play. I expect to be a lot of energy. I think the biggest challenge for us is the transition from playing outdoors to indoor tennis. Both teams we play are good programs and I am looking forward to competing against them."
 
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