Blue Raiders prepare for third-straight Top 50 opponent

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - The Middle Tennessee women's tennis team will begin a two-match set in the Sunshine State at 10 a.m. Saturday when it travels to Miami, Fla., to face No. 49 FIU in a contest pitting two Sun Belt Conference schools.

"We are looking forward to playing another ranked team in FIU," head coach Alison Ojeda said. "Year in and year out they are national competitors who are constantly striving to get better. Our team has made some tremendous improvements on the last couple years and we are more ready than ever to play some teams who push us to get better.

"We had some injuries last weekend against Mississippi and from a leadership standpoint, it really hurt us. We are all back for this Saturday's match and excited to compete."

The Blue Raiders will be facing their third-straight Top 50 foe when they line up against the Golden Panthers. Middle Tennessee (5-2) played No. 34 Marshall and No. 26 Mississippi last weekend.

After starting the season 5-0 and earning a No. 75 ranking themselves, the Blue Raiders lost both matches last week against the higher-ranked opponents.

Sophomore Marietta Bigus owns the team's best record with a 5-2 slate, while Taylor Coffey has only one setback at 4-1 thus far this spring.

On the doubles side, the pairing of Anna Djananova and Yuiri Nomoto has an unblemished 5-0 ledger.

FIU carries a 6-5 mark into the match and is coming off a 5-2 win over Boston College Wednesday. The Golden Panthers reached a high ranking of No. 27 before settling into their current position.

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