ORLANDO – The No. 39 UCF women's tennis team will return home on Thursday for its first in a pair of conference match ups this weekend. The Knights will host South Florida on Apr. 13 at the USTA National Campus. The match, originally slated for a 3 p.m. first serve, has been adjusted to 11 a.m. due to projected inclement weather.
SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS
The Knights snapped a three-match losing streak with a strong 4-0 sweep over Bethune-Cookman on Friday, Apr. 7, bringing their record up to 8-9. Sophomore Anique Kattenberg earned her first win at court four with a 6-0, 6-0 decision in the clinching point to put the squad back in the win column. Senior Marie Mattel moved up seven spots in the ITA Singles Poll after her win on Friday, putting her back at No. 32. Mattel remains the highest ranked singles player in AAC women's tennis. The duo of Nandini Sharma and Stefani Webb also climbed the rankings in the doubles poll, slotting in at No. 73.
SCOUTING THE FIELD
No. 59 South Florida comes to Orlando on a two-game win streak, taking nine of its last 10 contests. The squad is 13-6 on the season, with wins most recently over conference opponents Houston (4-1) and Tulane (4-3) last week. The Bulls are led by sophomore Sierra Berry, who is 14-2 in singles on the front courts this season. After being named the AAC Rookie of the Year last year, she has earned AAC Player of the Week honors twice during the spring campaign. Paired most frequently with Grace Schumacher at court one, Berry is 9-10 in doubles.
USF leads the all-time series 20-10 and took the last outing between the teams, a 4-3 decision in the AAC Tournament semi-finals last April.