By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech tennis team will finally hit the courts in Cookeville for the first time this spring, as the Golden Eagles welcome Chattanooga to Tech Tennis Courts for the 2022 home opener. First serve is slated for 1 p.m. CT and admission is free of charge.
A look at Tennessee Tech
After 10 straight road tilts to open the spring, Tech's Cookeville debut with the Mocs will serve as the beginning of a two-match homestand that will also see the Golden Eagles (1-9) host Eastern Illinois for the OVC opener in a Saturday afternoon affair at 1 p.m. CT.
Tech's rigorous early-season schedule has featured six nationally-ranked opponents out of the club's 10 total contests. TTU was most recently upended 6-1 at No. 26 Florida State on Saturday in the latest matchup of top-tier competition. The Golden Eagles have also gone toe-to-toe twice with No. 10 Wake Forest, twice with No. 19 Mississippi State and once with No. 23 Middle Tennessee.
Mika Berghaus claimed the lone point in TTU's tilt with the Seminoles, capturing a three-set battle in the No. 2 spot. Tech was forced to play shorthanded in Tallahassee with only five available Golden Eagles, which ultimately resulted in a forfeit out of the No. 6 singles meeting as well as a spot during doubles play, which led to FSU seizing the tandem point.
Andre Rodeia's three solo nods this season lead the squad, while Berghaus and Elias Grubert are the club leaders in doubles victories with three triumphs apiece.
A look at Chattanooga
The Mocs (5-12, 3-1 SoCon) are fresh off a 5-2 victory at Mercer in the team's last tangle on Sunday in a match that featured singles wins by Tomas Rodriguez, Kerim Hyatt, Simon Labbe and Peyton Gatti, all in the top four solo slots in the lineup.
Hyatt, Labbe and Rodriguez pace Chattanooga with seven solo nods each, with Rodriguez leading the charge behind a squad-leading 7-4 mark, all out of the top spot in the Moc order. From a doubles perspective, the combination of Labbe and Jordan McClure have proven to be the most formidable UTC tandem thanks to a 6-4 record, all out of the No. 3 spot. Labbe has the most overall victories with an 8-8 account this spring.
Inside the series
Thursday's get-together in Cookeville will mark the 61st in the all-time series between the two in-state foes. The Mocs hold a 34-26 edge in the set, but the Golden Eagles come into the home opener having seized four straight and six of the last seven.
Photo by Thomas Corhern