NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Following a 1-1 weekend split a weekend ago, the Northwestern State women's tennis team travels to face Stephen F. Austin in a Southland Conference clash on Saturday at 12 p.m.
At this point a season ago, NSU was in a similar position, sitting at 2-2 in Southland play. A pair of home wins against New Orleans and Southeastern opened an 8-1 run in conference, culminating with a Southland Conference tournament finals appearance.
The Lady Demons (10-5, 3-2) are 10-2 in their last 12 matches with four sweeps.
Leadership for the Lady Demons has followed a "by committee" approach in 2017. With only one junior, two sophomores and five freshmen, underclassmen have thrived in third year head coach
Olga Bazhanova's system.
"We have a very talented and motivated team," Bazhanova said. "This young group of girls are disciplined, hard working and put their hearts into the process. We expect tough competition and we will have to execute well to win this weekend."
A pair of doubles teams featuring freshmen
Kateryna Avram and
Vladislava Litvinova as well as junior
Polina Ivanova and freshman
Emilija Dancetovic have found plenty of success. Both teams are 8-4 and a combined 5-3 in conference.
This past weekend, freshman
Judit Castillo and sophomore
Iryna Vardanian went 2-0 in doubles while playing with each other for the first time in dual play.
Castillo, who excels with her ability to make jaw-dropping finesse shots is 4-1 in Southland singles competition. She made a step up from her typical No. 6 position and went 2-0 this past weekend in the No. 5 spot.
Stephen F. Austin (7-7, 3-3) holds a 4-1 home record and is 2-0 in home matches against Southland opponents.
The Ladyjacks have seen a high level of success out of their Nos. 4 and 6 singles positions. SFA has seen similar results no matter the player in the two positions, combining for a 19-9 record.
Liza Aginskaya has dominated the Nos. 5 and 6 singles positions to date. She is 9-1 between the two positions and 1-0 in the No. 4 position.
Following Saturday's match, the Lady Demons will have three days off before squaring off against Lamar on Wednesday in a makeup match in Lafayette.
