UT MARTIN TENNIS PLOWS PAST EIU IN 2022 CONFERENCE OPENER AT NEUTRAL COURT

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Decisively gaining their first Ohio Valley Conference Victory in only a second attempt, the University of Tennessee at Martin tennis Squad had little troubles with the Panthers of Eastern Illinois on Saturday afternoon, Downing their league foe by a 5-2 margin off the back of superb work in both singles and doubles play.

UTM and head Coach Caitlyn Williams made zero doubt as to the outcome of Saturday’s affair by taking the first two tag-team matches in a distinct continent (moved to the University of Illinois after a sequence of rain in Charleston prevented outdoor activity). The Skyhawks owned the neutral floor with a pair of duo’s wins from Aziza Aubin/Amelia Campbell and Jillian Niedzialowski/Lia Espinalthe fifth and fourth wins on the year for those combos, respectively.

Continuing their perfect weekend as a unit after yesterday’s similar Victory in doubles play over SIUE, the Aubin / Campbell tag pitched a 6-0 shutout over Lauren Ellis and Rachel Papavasilopoulos for their second straight win. Espinal and Niedzialowski continued UTM’s one-sided output in doubles by taking down Elizaveta Bukraba-Ulanova and Brittany Steven, 6-2.

Effectively clinching the match and the team’s second W of the season via one-on-one wins from Aubin, Espinal, Campbell, and Mizuki Sakurai, the Skyhawks kept their momentum going for the rest of the day while not letting the Panthers seize any daylight. Once in Eastern Illinois took the first point in singles play, Campbell quickly evened things up with a 6-4 (repeated) result over Christine Gouws, the senior’s second individual win of 2022.

Campbell’s doubles partner, Aubin, followed this up with yet another Victory to add to her exemplary spring, improving to an eighth consecutive Victory and ninth overall. Defeating Steven 6-2 and 6-3 to give UT Martin their third point, the junior has still not been bested in well over a month as arguably the Skyhawks’ now impressive performer.

From there, UTM cruised to their final two points to complete the win, as Espinal brought Coach Williams’ crew to the next W over Addison Brown, 6-4 and 6-3. Since the beginning of the year, the true freshman has trailed only Aubin in terms of total singles victories by snatching her eighth on Saturday. Sakurai clinched the triumph for the Skyhawks by securing point # 5, besting Ellis by 6-4 and 6-3 margins to scoop her second personal win in a row and sixth of the semester.

The weekend win over Eastern Illinois – the team’s fourth match this week alone all on the road – marks the program’s second straight over the Panthers after doing the same in 2021, which was then the team’s first win in Charleston in seven years. UTM will compete at their own venue next against Southeast Missouri on April 2^nd.

First serve against the Redhawks in Martin one week from today is scheduled for 1:00 pm