CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel tennis team will begin Southern Conference play this weekend with a pair of road matches at Chattanooga (Feb. 21) and at Furman (Feb. 23).

Friday's match with the Mocs is scheduled to get underway at the UTC Tennis Center at 2:30 p.m., while Sunday's match against the Paladins at the Mickel Tennis Center will begin at 3 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT
The Citadel tennis team closed out the a three-match road swing on Feb. 9 with a 7-0 loss at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Gavin Stewart and Andres Martin were the last pairing on the courts in single action. In the first set of the No. 1 matchup, Stewart was able to go up on Martin, the 75^th-ranked singles player in the nation, but the Yellow Jacket was able to bounce back for the 6-4, 6-4 win. Junior Will Graham bounced back from a 6-0 loss in the first set to take five games in set two from Marcus McDaniel, falling 6-0, 7-5 at No. 2 singles.

SCOUTING CHATTANOOGA
At 9-2, Chattanooga boasts the top overall record in the SoCon with four more wins than the next closest team, Furman. The Mocs, ranked No. 72 in the nation by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), boast wins over NCAA Division I opponents Appalachian State (6-1), Austin Peay (7-0), Presbyterian (6-1), UAB (5-1), Belmont (4-3) and UNC Asheville (6-1). Chattanooga won eight straight matches from Jan. 19 to Feb. 9 and most recently defeated Young Harris, 7-0, on Feb. 15. Chattanooga is led by senior Nikals Gerdes' 18-3 record in singles play and sophomore Tomas Rodriguez's 16-8 mark. Freshman Jeffrey Dewald (14) and sophomore Kerim Hyatt (11) are the only other two Mocs to have posted doube-digit singles wins to this point.

SCOUTING FURMAN
Furman enters the weekend with a 5-4 overall record, and the Paladins are the only team in the SoCon to already boast a win in league play as the 'Dins defeated UNC Greensboro on the road, 4-3, on Feb. 15. After opening the season with three straight losses to Power 5 teams (Florida, Virginia, Clemson), the Paladins rattled off five straight wins from Jan. 25 to Feb. 15, including three over NCAA Division I foes Winthrop (6-1, Jan. 26), Davidson (4-1, Feb. 8) and UNCG. Furman most recently dropped a match, 4-3 at Charlotte on Feb. 16. Senior Jake Bhangdia leads the way with five singles victories, including a 4-1 record at No. 3 singles, while fellow senior Clarke Wilson boasts four wins. Junior Henrik Atlevi, senior Jake Munns, sophomore James Roelofse and junior Drew Singerman all bring three singles wins into the weekend.

UP NEXT
The Citadel will head up to the state of Virginia next weekend for a trio of matches against Richmond and Fairmont State. The Bulldogs and Spiders will tangle on Friday, Feb. 28 in a single match. The 'Dogs will then take on Fairmont State in a neutral-site doubleheader.

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