Thursday, September 14, 2006

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (September 14, 2006) - The ETSU women's tennis team opens up its fall season this weekend competing in two different tournaments. The Lady Bucs will split up this weekend as some members of the team head to Knoxville for the St. Mary's Classic hosted by the University of Tennessee, while other members stay home to host the ETSU Fall Invitational.

Newcomers Brittany Stewart (Brentwood, Tenn.), Sharvis Smith (Norton, Va.) will get their first taste of collegiate action as they compete in the ETSU Fall Invitational along with Latoya Hicks (Milwaukee, Wis.) and former Lady Buc Sandie Knight (Adamstown, Australia). The Lady Bucs saw success in their tournament last year, as each member of the team went undefeated.

Traveling for their season opener, the other members of the Lady Bucs are set to square off against some of the nation's top programs. Junior Olya Batsula, who will be competing in Flight One singles, will face No. 78 Ashlee Davis of Wake Forest in the opening round, while senior Masha Ilina (Kyiv, Ukraine) will face Vicky Jones of Tennessee in Flight Two play.

In doubles action, the team of Batsula and Tara Byrne (Johnson City, Tenn.) will open up against Carolina Escamilla and Kim Coventry of Kentucky, the No. 8 team in the nation.