Meg Doody, Sports Writer This weekend, the Emory & Henry men’s and women’s tennis teams competed for the first time for the spring season. On Saturday, both teams traveled to Spartanburg Methodist College for an exhibition match, and both teams were able to come out on top with a final score of 9-0 for the women’s team and 8-1 for the men's team. On Sunday, both the men’s and the women’s teams returned home for their first competitive spring season match-up against William Peace University. Both teams again came out on top, with the women having a final score of 9-0 and men with a final score of 7-2. According to the coach of both the men’s and women’s tennis teams, Christine Johnston, who is in her third year of coaching here, the wet weather so far this spring has limited how much the teams are able to practice and be on the courts, as the rain and snow can damage the balls and can make the courts slippery. The team is also fairly young, according to Johnston, which provides even more challenges going forward. Coach Johnston said that the program has been through a difficult adjustment period, and said that it had been “six years of a drought for the program with having a winning record.” Johnston elaborated more, saying, “The seniors, in the four years they had been here, had been through three coaches. They faced the adversity of the changing coaching staff, and had to buy into the program.” Johnston expressed that based on the team having more consistency, she feels that the team faces a bright future ahead. She said, “Both teams are young and they are coming together, buying into my coaching philosophy and are bringing the team to better heights.” Sophomore tennis player, Archer Marlow, describes the tennis team as “goofy, really funny and everyone is their own individual character. Tennis is a close-knit sport, and that allows for everyone to talk to each other and brings up a lot of funny conversations.” He noted that his favorite part about the matches is the “competitiveness,” noting that it is “ ... a good way to test yourself as a player.” However, when asked about the hardest part of playing tennis, he said that it was “the mentality, staying positive and getting [your] footwork better.” Next week, the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) season will kick off for both teams as they travel to Virginia Wesleyan University next Saturday, March 7. On Sunday, March 8, both teams will travel to Randolph Macon University for another ODAC match. They return back home that Tuesday, March 10, for non-ODAC action against Johnson College.
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March 2020
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