March 31, 2005
ORLANDO - When the UCF women's tennis team renews its rivalry with Stetson on Friday at 2:30 p.m., the Golden Knights will be looking toward earning an advantage in the upcoming Atlantic Sun Championships. A victory over the Hatters in DeLand would put the Knights in good position for the top seed in the conference tournament.
This week, UCF (9-7) broke into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings for the first time this year at No. 75. The team is undefeated at 3-0 in A-Sun matches thus far this season thanks to wins over Jacksonville, Florida Atlantic and Mercer. An early March contest versus reigning conference champion Troy was cancelled due to lack of officials.
The Hatters (12-5) have a 12-24 lead over the Golden Knights in series history although UCF won both matches last season. Stetson is also 3-0 in A-Sun play this year.
Knights' head coach Patricia Allison knows that earning the win over the Hatters won't be easy. "Stetson is a very improved team," she said. "We are looking forward to the match, but we know it will be very tough."