Tennis team does well in invitationals

By Myra Frederick
Sports Editor

The UNCP women’s tennis team just completed their fall pre-season.

The ladies that make up the team now, and who will most likely be on the team come spring, are seniors Abi French and Shannon Gentry, junior Erin Saltzman, sophomores Natalie Dies and Stacey Wood and newcomer freshman Jessica Figgins.

French, who is from Avon, Ind., and Gentry, who is from Mt. Airy, NC, are the captains of the 2004-2005 tennis team.

Head Coach Robin Langley has not yet decided the number lineup of the team.

The women played their first fall preseason game on Oct. 1-3 in the ITA Regionals where they played really well.

Langley said that the regionals’ tournament was a tough tournament to start out their fall season. “We faced some strong competition, mainly seeded Peach Belt players, in the first round, so we struggled,” Langley said.

Both Saltzman and Figgins advanced to the individual consolation quaterfinals in the singles round.

Saltzman won two straight sets in advancing to the quarterfinals. In her first game, she won 6-0, 6-2 over Queen’s Hansen. In her second game, she beat Georgia College’s Intriago in two sets, 6-2, 6-3. Unfortunately, Saltzman lost in the quarterfinal round to Erkine’s Dawson 6-1, 6-2.

The new freshman, Figgins, ousted Erkine’s Taylor by winning three sets, 5-7,6-1,12-10. She also ousted her own teammate, Gentry, by a score of 6-3, 3-6, 10-7.

Both Figgins and Saltzman finished the regionals with 2-2 records.

Following the ITA tournament, the Lady Braves played in the Georgia College and State University Fall Tennis Invitational on Oct. 8-10.

The ladies played exceptionally well with Dies and French both advancing in the doubles finals. Six of their nine positions advanced past the first round.

In the first round of the singles rounds, French defeated Gordon Junior College’s (GJC) Katie Soskin in three sets by a score of 6-3,0-6,6-2. Dies defeated Maria Dreaden, also of GJC. Dies won in two sets, 6-4,6-0. Figgins defeated Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s (ABAC) Ashley Jacobs’ in two quick sets with a score of 6-4 and 6-3.

French and Dies also did well in the doubles’ rounds. They went all the way to the first round of the quarterfinal rounds. In the first round, the duo defeated ABAC’s Anna Daniel and Ambur Humphrey with a whipping score of 8-0.

In the second round of the quarterfinal, the dynamic duo defeated Jaclynn Smith and Katie Soskin of GJC by 8-4.

Figgins and Gentry also played the role of a dynamic duo in the quarterfinal round. They defeated Kelli Helms and Whitney Lightfoot of ABAC 8-4.

“This was a great tournament for us,” Langley said of her team’s accomplishments in the tourney.

On Oct.15-17, the Lady Braves competed in their last tournament before their spring season. They are preparing for spring 2005.