Fall Tennis is preparing for the Southland Conference Masters

By: Zach Freihofer, graduate assistant for sports information

HAMMOND – The Northwestern State women’s tennis team travels south to Hammond to compete in the Southland Conference Masters.

“It’s another opportunity to compete,” said head coach Marcos Morelli says. “We look at it as another tournament, so the approach hasn’t changed: play simple tennis.”

Two Lady Demons make the trip: junior transfer Zoi Spyrou and in the second year Honoka Umeda.

Play begins with the pair playing second-round doubles on Friday and receiving a bye against Texas-A&M Corpus Christi’s Ksenia Ramanouskaya and Yana Mykytyn at 11 a.m. on the first day

Umeda will compete in the singles tournament later in the day, playing the winner of the first-round bout between UT Rio-Grande Valley’s Yaiza Vazquez and McNeese’s Salmone Fluri.

Umeda won all three rounds in her category last time at the UCA Invitational.

“It’s great preparation for the coming season,” says Morelli. “The best players in the conference compete against each other, including ours.”

The Masters tournament starts on Thursday at 2:00 p.m. and ends on Sunday.