CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Coming off of a 6-1 home opening win on Friday afternoon, Western Carolina women’s tennis looks to make it two straight with a 1:30 p.m. CT / 2:30 p.m. ET first serve against Western Kentucky from the WKU Tennis Complex in Bowling Green, Ky.
The Catamounts rebounded on Friday from their season-opening loss at ACC foe Clemson as WCU picked up the 6-1 victory over Emmanuel at the Catamount Athletics Complex. In the win, all seven Catamounts contributed by picking up a win in either singles or doubles action with Isabella Sambola, Jade Groen, Madison Schwarz, and Angela Perez each claiming wins in singles and doubles.
Friday’s win marks the fifth straight year the Catamounts have opened their home schedule with a victory dating back to the 2018 campaign. WCU has now earned wins on its home court in nine of the last 11 matches.
Western Kentucky improved to 1-1 on the young season Friday with a 7-0 victory over Northern Kentucky as the Lady Toppers defended their home court. WKU dropped its spring opener to directional foe Eastern Kentucky back on Jan. 14 by the score of 4-3.
The Lady Toppers are led by Sofia Blanco and Anna-Marie Kopecka who both are 2-0 thus far in the 2024 spring campaign as WKU is 8-4 in singles through its opening two matches. Blanco along with Samantha Martinez are 2-0 in doubles play for WKU.
Western Kentucky finished 15-11 during the 2023 campaign as the Lady Toppers fell in the first round of the Conference USA tournament to Middle Tennessee.
Sunday’s match marks the second straight year the two schools have met on the courts with WCU picking up the 4-3 decision last season in Bowling Green. Madison Schwarz was able to battle back from down a set to help push the Catamounts past the Lady Toppers during last year’s meeting.
Following Sunday’s match at WKU, the Catamounts return home for a 2 p.m. start on Tuesday, Jan. 30, against Tusculum from the Catamount Athletic Complex. The previous two scheduled matches with the Pioneers have been postponed due to weather.
For the latest information on Catamount women’s tennis, follow @catamounts or @catamountTennis on Twitter or go to www.catamountsports.com. In-match updates are on the Catamount women’s tennis official tennis Twitter page.