Friday, April 15
Martin, Tenn.
2 p.m.
UT Martin
vs
Austin Peay
FINAL HOME WEEKEND OF 2022 AWAITS SKYHAWK TENNIS VS. AUSTIN PEAY AND MURRAY STATE
4/14/2022 11:43:00 AM | Tennis
MARTIN, Tenn. – With only a trio of matches remaining on the 2022 regular season calendar for the University of Tennessee at Martin tennis team, the Skyhawks will gear up for the next two in their own backyard this weekend. Kicking off a tough two-day stretch by hosting the Governors of Austin Peay – current holders of a seven-game winning streak – UTM will turn around after Friday's meeting with APSU and face the Murray State Racers in the final home appearance of senior Sina Albersmeier and the rest of head coach Caitlyn Williams' unit this spring.
Rolling into Friday and Saturday's double-feature with a record of 1-3 against Ohio Valley Conference opposition, the Skyhawks were last seen in Nashville at the close of last weekend in a back-and-forth battle with Belmont where the Bruins ultimately grabbed a 5-2 decision. As the hourglass fades to nine days until the 2022 finale at Tennessee State, UT Martin claims the No. 6 seed in the latest OVC standings – one match ahead of both the Tigers and Eastern Illinois, whom the Skyhawks vanquished on a neutral court – which would grant them entry into the conference tournament in Evansville, Indiana on the final weekend of April.
There's still plenty of work to be done before thinking about postseason play, however, starting with the red-hot Governors on Friday in a major league matchup. Completely flipping the script on what started out as an 0-5 record, Austin Peay will face the Skyhawks as one of only two teams in the OVC with a perfect mark against fellow conference schools alongside Southeast Missouri, who UTM also hosted two weeks back.
Downing their first three league opponents by a combined score of 16-5, APSU will look for a repeat of 2021's result against the Skyhawks, a 4-3 barnburner in Martin. After taking top seed SEMO to the limit in their last home outing, UTM aims to give the Governors their first loss since February 20th on Friday, with first serve taking place at 2:00 p.m.
The following afternoon at 12:00 p.m., the Skyhawks will honor Albersmeier's accomplishments on Senior Day before going head-to-head with rival Murray State, a squad sitting at 9-8 overall coming into the weekend. While UTM faces Austin Peay, the Racers will visit Cape Girardeau for a Friday duel with Southeast Missouri behind a 2-2 resume against league opponents.
Possessing 14 total victories in singles and doubles play over their four conference dates – including three singles wins apiece from Lia Espinal and Mizuki Sakurai – the Skyhawks have taken at least one doubles W in every OVC bout, accomplishing that feat in five out of their last six matches.
Rolling into Friday and Saturday's double-feature with a record of 1-3 against Ohio Valley Conference opposition, the Skyhawks were last seen in Nashville at the close of last weekend in a back-and-forth battle with Belmont where the Bruins ultimately grabbed a 5-2 decision. As the hourglass fades to nine days until the 2022 finale at Tennessee State, UT Martin claims the No. 6 seed in the latest OVC standings – one match ahead of both the Tigers and Eastern Illinois, whom the Skyhawks vanquished on a neutral court – which would grant them entry into the conference tournament in Evansville, Indiana on the final weekend of April.
There's still plenty of work to be done before thinking about postseason play, however, starting with the red-hot Governors on Friday in a major league matchup. Completely flipping the script on what started out as an 0-5 record, Austin Peay will face the Skyhawks as one of only two teams in the OVC with a perfect mark against fellow conference schools alongside Southeast Missouri, who UTM also hosted two weeks back.
Downing their first three league opponents by a combined score of 16-5, APSU will look for a repeat of 2021's result against the Skyhawks, a 4-3 barnburner in Martin. After taking top seed SEMO to the limit in their last home outing, UTM aims to give the Governors their first loss since February 20th on Friday, with first serve taking place at 2:00 p.m.
The following afternoon at 12:00 p.m., the Skyhawks will honor Albersmeier's accomplishments on Senior Day before going head-to-head with rival Murray State, a squad sitting at 9-8 overall coming into the weekend. While UTM faces Austin Peay, the Racers will visit Cape Girardeau for a Friday duel with Southeast Missouri behind a 2-2 resume against league opponents.
Possessing 14 total victories in singles and doubles play over their four conference dates – including three singles wins apiece from Lia Espinal and Mizuki Sakurai – the Skyhawks have taken at least one doubles W in every OVC bout, accomplishing that feat in five out of their last six matches.
Players Mentioned
FB: Southeast Missouri Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, September 28
Skyhawk Sports Talk - Season 3, Episode 5
Tuesday, September 23
Skyhawk Sports Talk - Season 3, Episode 4
Tuesday, September 16
FB: Southern Illinois Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, September 14