| #24 Furman vs. #18 UCF Saturday, Mar. 6, 3 p.m. WATCH | LIVE STATS | FAU vs. #18 UCF Sunday, Mar. 7, Noon WATCH | LIVE STATS |
ORLANDO, Fla. – The No. 18 UCF women's tennis team returns home this weekend for a pair of matches at the UCF Collegiate Tennis Center at the USTA National Campus. The Knights will host No. 24 Furman on Saturday before taking on FAU on Sunday.
The Black and Gold checked in at No. 18 in the Oracle/ITA team rankings on Wednesday for the third consecutive week. UCF will have a chance to climb following this weekend as they'll face their sixth ranked opponent of the season.
The Knights return from a Texas trip that saw them split decisions with TCU and No. 2 Texas. At the time, TCU was unranked but now sits at No. 48 in the team rankings. UCF earned a 5-1 victory over the Horned Frogs before falling 4-0 to Texas two days later, ending the Black and Gold's seven-match winning streak.
Furman enters the weekend with a record of 9-6 this season and four consecutive victories. The Paladins have beat Presbyterian, Western Carolina, Charlotte and Kennesaw State on their run, outscoring their opponents 24-2. They've faced three ranked teams so far, triumphing 5-2 over No. 16 Wake Forest and No. 18 South Carolina 5-2 and falling 4-2 to No. 10 Duke. UCF is the first stop on Furman's road trip to the Sunshine State as the Paladins will visit South Florida and North Florida following Saturday's match. Katarina Kozarov is the lone ranked player for Furman, checking in at No. 15 in the Oracle/ITA singles rankings. In doubles, Julia Adams is ranked in two different tandems, sitting at No. 18 with Madison Dillon and is ranked No. 27 with Kozarov.
The Paladins and the Knights have split their last four meetings, their last matchup coming back in 2017, exactly four years prior come match day. Furman earned the 4-3 victory that day and own a 4-2 all-time series edge.
FAU pays UCF a visit for the first time since 2017 and bring a 4-2 record with them. Their two losses on the season are a 6-1 loss to Miami and a 4-0 sweep at the hands of FSU. The Owls have beat UNLV, UTSA, Youngstown State and FGCU during their campaign. FAU has no ranked singles or doubles players this year. The Owls haven't lost a match at the No. 2 singles spot to date as Martina Kudelova and Natalia Boltinskaya have combined to go 4-0 at that spot.
The Black and Gold have won their last nine matches against the Owls and boast a 27-11 advantage in the all-time series. UCF has been victorious in 22 of the last 25 against FAU.
CAPACITY, MASKS AND MORE
The USTA National Campus will allow 25 percent of capacity of fans at matches. Masks and social distancing in the stands are required. A daily health waiver must be filled out upon entry to the venue. Spectators will not be allowed in the indoor tennis facility if the match needs to be moved for any reason. More information can be found on the links attached to this preview. Matches are free to attend.
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