Eagles Prepared for Southern Conference Tournament

STATESBORO, Ga. – With the Southern Conference Tournament scheduled to begin tomorrow, the Georgia Southern women’s tennis team is excited to continue their steady climb and is ready to make a run at their first SoCon title since 1998.

The Eagles have continued to improve under fourth-year coach Amy Bonner. This year, GSU finished out the regular season with a .500 record and improved their conference mark to 3-6, heading into Thursday’s matchup with Western Carolina. Equally as impressive, the Eagles have amassed 10 victories, which are the most by a GSU squad since the 2004 season, when they recorded a 10-13 record in Bonner’s first year at the helm.

“I am looking for the team to compete hard in Thursday's match with Western,” said Bonner. “When we played them earlier in the season we lost at the No. 1 doubles position and at No. 1 singles...I know my No. 1 doubles team is excited about having a second chance and I know Kristi (Kegerreis) is fired up about her singles match.”

Georgia Southern had a stretch beginning Feb. 9 that ended March 5, where they were victorious in seven out of eight matches.

Experience and cohesion has led to consistency, which has proved to be the key to success. The Eagles returned eight letter winners from last year’s squad and added two newcomers to this season’s roster. The newcomers, Ali Beavers (Kingsport, Tenn.) and Melanie Rolle (Gainesville, Fla.), have had an immediate impact on the Eagles’ improvement. Beavers has enjoyed a successful collegiate debut tallying an overall dual record of 14-6 playing primarily from the No. 3 position, which includes a 6-3 record in Southern Conference singles action. The tandem of Beavers and Rolle has been impressive as they posted a 12-4 dual doubles record. The 12 victories are the most by a GSU duo since 2005, when Ciara Finucane and Szilvia Zsakay earned 14 wins.

“We definitely have a team that works well together on and off the court,” said Bonner. “When you combine that with talent on the court it definitely gives us an edge. But as I mentioned, we are looking forward to having a strong SoCon Championship performance as well as an even stronger season next spring.”

The abundance of depth has provided the Eagles with a spark throughout the season. GSU has used nine different doubles lineups and every member of the team has appeared in at least one singles match. Additionally, five members of this year’s unit have registered at least nine singles victories, with three of the five recording 10 or more.

“Our depth has definitely helped,” said Bonner. “We are solid all the way through our lineup and it has helped us tally up ten victories this season. However, we are not satisfied as a team about the number of conference matches we dropped. We are using that to motivate us in the tournament as well as looking ahead to next season.”

Rolle has the second most wins on the team with an 11-8 record. Junior Molly Maddox (Rome, Ga.) has notched 10 victories, while sophomores Kristi Kegerreis (Fairfax, Va.) and Jessica Fuller (Cartersville, Ga.) have each been successful nine times in singles action. Senior Kelli Helms (Cairo, Ga.) and junior Shea Huxtable (Winter Springs, Fla.) both have four victories on the season.

In doubles action, juniors Emma Knight (Duluth, Ga.) and Jessica Matlosz (Alpharetta, Ga.) have compiled a 7-5 record with most of their matches being played at the No. 3 seed. Christine Caforio (Acworth, Ga.) has notched eight victories in doubles action playing the majority of her matches with Kegerreis.

The Southern Conference Tournament begins tomorrow; with the No. 7 seeded Eagles matched up against the 10th-seeded Catamounts of Western Carolina. The match is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m.

Category: Women's Tennis

Published on Wednesday, 16 April 2008 00:18