By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech tennis team is set to dust off the rackets and prepare for a southeast road trip that will feature a pair of mid-week matches. Playing for the first time in March, the Golden Eagles (2-9) will clash at NAIA powerhouse Georgia Gwinnett on Tuesday, before trekking to Winthrop on Thursday.

Tuesday's match with the Grizzlies (14-0) will begin at 1 p.m. CT, while Thursday's bout with the Eagles (3-5) is set to kick off at 11 a.m.

Tech hasn't hit the courts since a three-match road swing down in Louisiana, Feb. 23-24. Although the Golden Eagles were upended in all three contests to clubs with a combined record of 36-13, No. 48 Eduardo Mena shined with an unblemished weekend. The 6-foot senior went a perfect 2-0 out of the vaunted No. 1 spot in the lineup en route to claiming the OVC Tennis Male Athlete of the Week honor.

Mena (5-4) and freshman Gonzalo Garcia (5-6) are tied for the team lead in singles wins this spring, while Garcia's 4-3 doubles mark is the best on the Golden Eagles.

Georgia Gwinnett, winners of four-straight NAIA national championships, is off to another stellar start in 2018 with an undefeated record as the No. 1-ranked NAIA team in the country. Not only do the Grizzlies possess a perfect 14-0 record, but Georgia Gwinnett has not dropped a point all season. Serge Becerra and Gilad Berman pace the squad with identical 10-0 records in singles action.

The Golden Eagles are 0-3 in the all-time series with the Grizzlies.

After an 0-4 start to the season, Winthrop has bounced back with three wins in the club's last four matches. The Eagles are coming off back-to-back, 5-2, victories over Gardner-Webb on Saturday and UNC Asheville on Sunday. Gabriel Dias, Tremayne Mitchell, Diego Quiroz and Joshua Ryan each posted 2-0 singles marks over the weekend. Quiroz did his damage out of the No. 1 spot.

Tech is 0-5 in the all-time series with Winthrop.

Photo by Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information