Virginia Tech Up Next for Herd Tennis

4/6/2005

Freshman Shannon Brown and the Herd practicing at Virginia Tech on Wednesday evening. Photo by Matt Riley

BLACKSBURG, Va. - After three consecutive 7-0 sweeps in Mid-American Conference action, the Marshall Thundering Herd tennis team hits the road for a non-conference match against the Virginia Tech Hokies of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Marshall (10-7, 3-1 MAC) is getting its groove back after suffering a close loss to No. 51 ranked Western Michigan two weeks ago and the No. 67 ranked Herd will look to keep its stride going against a Virginia Tech team that has been plagued by injuries all season.

The Hokies are 7-12 overall and 0-8 in the tough ACC, but the Herd expects it to be close like all the previous meetings between the two schools. Marshall is 3-7 all-time against Virginia Tech, but has won three of the last four meetings, including a 7-0 win last year in Huntington. The Hokies beat the Herd 4-3 the last time the two got together in Blacksburg.

“Anytime you step out of conference it’s a difficult thing to do,” Marshall head coach John Mercer said. “Especially when it’s a team from the ACC. They’ve had some unfortunate things happen this year, but we’ve also had our share. We need to stay focused and keep our momentum going heading toward the end of the season.”

Marshall is led by All-American and current MAC Player of the Week, Ashley Kroh (Louisville, Ky.), and the No. 60 ranked doubles duo of Joelle Good (Zurich, Switzerland) and Danielle Hock (Wigan, England). The Hokies are led by Anat Elazari and freshman Jessica Long. Virginia Tech is expected to be at full strength for the first time in several weeks when it plays Marshall tomorrow.

Following the Virginia Tech match, the Herd will have little time to regroup when it heads back to MAC action Friday as it plays host to rival Miami at 1 p.m. at the Brian David Fox Tennis Center (Marshall Tennis Courts).