April 9, 2010

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University women's tennis team will play its final home match of the 2010 season Saturday as the Bulldogs welcome the Georgia Southern Eagles to the Samford Tennis Center for a Southern Conference duel which is slated to begin at 11 a.m. (CDT).

Samford (14-5, 6-1 SoCon) heads into the matchup as one of the hottest teams in the conference. The second-place Bulldogs have been victorious in six-consecutive matches and have not been defeated since March 16. Samford has also won five straight contests at home and has not suffered a loss at the Samford Tennis Center since March 5.

On Thursday, the Bulldogs continued their winning ways in SoCon play as they rolled to a 6-1 victory against Chattanooga.

In its most recent triumph, Samford swept all three of the doubles matches and then breezed to straight-set singles victories on courts No. 1, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6. Winning in singles play for the Bulldogs were Taylor Morgan, Madelie Janse Van Rensburg, Stephanie Parkison, Rebecca Kirven and Lindsey Mallory.

Mallory, Samford's sophomore native of Louisville, Ky., extended her winning streak to six-consecutive matches and owns a 13-5 record in dual play this season.

The Bulldogs' Kirven also tallied a straight-set victory and moved her dual-match record on the year to 14-4. In doubles play, Samford's No. 2 tandem of Kirven and Andrie Meiring earned its seventh-consecutive victory with an 8-5 win against Chattanooga's duo of Emily Hangstefer and Charlotte Bossy, 8-5.

Samford's Parkison, the Bulldogs' lone senior on the roster this season, will be making her final appearance at the Samford Tennis Center. A native of Clarkston, Mich., the Bulldogs' gritty competitor has tallied an 11-7 record at the No. 4 singles position this season.

Georgia Southern (10-7, 4-3 SoCon) enters Saturday's contest with a full head of steam after earning back-to-back victories against Appalachian State and Mercer.

The Eagles currently own a 3-3 record on the road this year and will close out their regular-season schedule with matches at Samford, Chattanooga and College of Charleston.

Ashley Hungerford and Melanie Rolle head into Saturday's match with two of Georgia Southern's best singles records this season. Hungerford, the Eagles' No. 5 player, has compiled a 10-4 mark in dual-match play, while Rolle owns a 10-5 record this year, including a 5-2 mark at the No. 2 singles position.

Last season, Samford and Georgia Southern squared off in Statesboro, Ga., and the Bulldogs suffered a hard-fought 4-3 defeat in SoCon play.

Following Saturday's home finale, the Samford University women's tennis team will next be in action April 17 at noon (CDT) as the Bulldogs begin their regular season ending road trip against the Appalachian State Mountaineers in Boone, N.C.