GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's tennis teams will begin their 2020 spring schedule on Sunday, Feb. 2 with a neutral-site match against the University of Indianapolis in Lexington, Kentucky.
Head coach Adam Jackson has finalized a slate of 19 men's matches and 17 women's matches, which features a slate of 11 South Atlantic Conference contests leading up to the SAC Men's and Women's Tennis Championship tournament starting April 15.
The Pioneer women, ranked 19th in the first Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division II poll of the 2020 season, posted a perfect 10-0 record in conference matches to win their first outright SAC title since 2009. Tusculum finished 17-4 overall and 18th in the final ITA Division II rankings for the 2019 season, and has matches scheduled this spring with four preseason ranked teams, including Wingate (11th) and Queens (22nd).
The Pioneer men finished 13-6 overall last season and in fourth place in the SAC with a 7-3 league record. Four of the Pioneers' matches this spring are against teams ranked in the ITA preseason Top 25, a list that includes SAC members Wingate (fourth) and Queens (23rd).
Tusculum opens its spring against 12th-ranked Indianapolis on Sunday, Feb. 2. The Greyhound men, who beat the Pioneers 4-3 in neutral-site action last season, finished with a 17-6 overall record in 2019 and beat Drury to win the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament championship. The Greyhounds advances out of the Midwest Regional to the NCAA national championship, where UIndy lost 4-3 to Midwestern State in the round of 16. UIndy's women beat Tusculum 7-0 last year and advanced to the NCAA semifinals, where the Greyhounds lost 4-0 to Lynn to end the season at 24-1.
The Pioneer men play their home opener on Sunday, Feb. 9 with matches against West Virginia Wesleyan and Johnson C. Smith. The Bobcats won the Mountain East Conference regular season with a 7-0 record and defeated Charleston 4-1 to earn the MEC Tournament title. West Virginia Wesleyan lost 4-2 to Bluefield State in the regional finals to end the year with a record of 17-7. The Golden Bulls went 1-11 last year and dropped a 7-0 decision to the Pioneers last March.
On Saturday, Feb. 15 the Pioneers will open their SAC schedule at Newberry. On the men's side, the Wolves finished 10-14 overall and 5-5 in the SAC last season, falling to Queens in the SAC quarterfinals. Newberry beat Tusculum 4-3 in last year's meeting, and the Wolves have won the last four matchup with the Pioneers. Newberry's women were 9-13 overall and 2-8 in the SAC last season, with the Pioneers beating the Wolves 5-2 in the regular season.
Tusculum will be back on the road to visit Lee for a non-conference match on Wednesday, Feb. 19. Lee's men were 17-6 overall last season and 6-4 in the Gulf South Conference, losing to Valdosta State in the GSC semifinals to end the year with a school record for victories. The Pioneers beat the Flames 4-3 at home last February in the first-ever meeting between the schools. The Lee women were 16-6 last year and 7-4 in the GSC, losing to Valdosta State in the opening match of the conference tournament.
The Pioneers will return to the Nichols Tennis Complex on Saturday, Feb. 22 for a matchup with Young Harris. The Mountain Lion men were 1-14 overall last season and 1-8 in the Peach Belt Conference, but battled the Pioneers before losing 4-3 at home last February. Young Harris has a 3-2 lead in the all-time series with Tusculum, winning two out of three matchups in Greeneville. The Young Harris women were 1-12 last season and 1-8 in the PBC, with a 7-0 loss to the Pioneers last season dropping the Mountain Lions to a 3-2 lead in the all-time series.
Tusculum's men will play the first of two exhibition matches on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at UNC Asheville, before the men and women are back home with North Georgia on Saturday, Feb. 29. The Nighthawk men are ranked 18th in the preseason ITA Division II poll, after going 15-8 overall and 5-4 in the Peach Belt Conference last year. North Georgia lost 4-2 to Lander in the PBC Tournament, and fell 4-1 to USC Aiken in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Nighthawks have won all three meetings with the Pioneers, including a 6-1 win at home last February. The UNG women are 10th in the preseason ITA rankings and were 22-6 last season, going 7-2 in the PBC and losing to Columbus State in the conference tournament finals. The Nighthawks advanced to the round of 16 at the NCAA Championships before losing to Lynn.
The Pioneers will open March with a home match against Anderson on Wednesday, March 4. The Trojan men placed fifth in the SAC at 6-4 in league play last season, then beat the Pioneers 4-2 in the quarterfinal round before being eliminated 4-0 by Wingate in the semifinals to end the year at 13-8. The Pioneers beat the Trojans 4-3 in their regular-season meeting last March, but Anderson leads the all-time series by an 8-3 margin. On the women's side, the Trojans were 12-9 overall and 4-6 in the conference last year, with a loss to Wingate in the SAC quarterfinals. Tusculum beat Anderson 6-1 last season and the Pioneers have won six straight meetings with the Trojans.
Tusculum will play four of its next five matches on the road, starting Saturday, March 7 at Coker. The Cobras were 5-5 in men's conference play last season and lost 4-3 to Lenoir-Rhyne in the conference quarterfinals to end the year with an overall record of 8-11. The Pioneers beat Coker 5-2 in their regular-season meeting last March, and are 6-1 against the Cobras all-time. Coker's women were 4-15 overall and 1-9 in the SAC last year, which included a 7-0 loss to the Pioneers.
On Thursday, March 12 the Pioneers will travel to Francis Marion for a non-conference match against the Patriots. Francis Marion's men were 10-10 last season and went 2-7 in the Peach Belt Conference, with a loss to Columbus State in the quarterfinal round of the conference tournament. The Patriot women were 14-8 last season and 4-5 in the Peach Belt Conference, falling to North Georgia in the PBC quarterfinals. The Pioneers and Patriots have not faced each other since the 2013 season.
The month of March will conclude for the Pioneers with six consecutive conference matches, starting on Saturday, March 14 at home against Catawba. The Indians were eighth in the men's conference standings last season with a 3-7 record, and ended the year with a 10-12 record following a loss to Wingate in the SAC quarterfinals. The Pioneers beat the Indians 6-1 last April and have won eight straight meetings in the series. Catawba's women were 13-9 overall and 4-6 in the SAC last season, losing back-to-back matches to the Pioneers in the regular-season finale and again in the quarterfinal round of the SAC tournament.
Tusculum will be back on the road on Wednesday, March 18 at Lincoln Memorial. The Railsplitter men failed to qualify for the SAC tournament and finished the year with an 8-10 overall record and 2-8 in conference play. The Pioneers beat the Railsplitters 5-2 last season, their third straight win over LMU which increased Tusculum's lead in the all-time series to 8-5. LMU's women were 11-9 overall last year and 5-5 in conference, with a 6-1 loss to the Pioneers in the regular season and a loss to Queens in the SAC quarterfinals. Tusculum's women have won eight straight over LMU and have a 9-4 all-time series lead over the Railsplitters.
The toughest test of the season comes for the Pioneers on Saturday, March 21 with a visit to perennial SAC power Wingate. The Bulldog men, ranked fourth in Division II in the preseason ITA poll, won the SAC regular-season championship with a 9-1 record and beat Catawba, Anderson and Queens to capture the tournament title. The Bulldogs advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament before a 4-2 loss to USC Aiken ended Wingate's season with a 19-4 record. Wingate beat Tusculum 5-2 last season, and the Bulldogs have won four straight over the Pioneers since a 5-4 Tusculum win in 2016.
Wingate's women lost an epic 4-3 decision to Tusculum in the regular-season meeting last year to snap a streak of 76 straight regular-season SAC wins dating to 2012, but came back to defeat the Pioneers 4-2 in the SAC Championship finals. The Bulldogs lost to North Georgia in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament to finish the season with a 20-2 record.
Tusculum will return home to square off with Mars Hill on Wednesday, March 25. The Mars Hill men finished 0-10 in conference play and 7-15 overall last season, while the Lion women were 0-10 in the league and 9-13 overall. The Pioneers swept the Lions on the road last April, winning the men's match 6-1 and the women's contest by a 7-0 score.
The Pioneers will wrap up March with a busy weekend of conference competition. On Saturday, March 28 the Pioneers will host Lenoir-Rhyne. The LR men were tied for second place in the SAC at 8-2 last season and fell to Queens in the conference semifinals to finish with an 18-4 record. The Bear women took fourth place in the conference at 7-3 and were knocked out of the SAC tournament by the Pioneers in the semifinal round to finish at 18-5. Tusculum's men lost 4-3 to Lenoir-Rhyne in the regular season, while the women beat the Bears 5-2 in the regular season and 4-2 in the conference tournament.
Tusculum then travels to UVa-Wise for their first-ever SAC match against the Cavaliers on Sunday, March 29. The UVa-Wise men were 0-19 overall and 0-7 in the Mountain East Conference last year, while the women were 7-13 overall and 4-4 in conference play. The Pioneers hosted the Cavaliers in a non-conference match last February and swept by identical 7-0 scores.
The month of April opens with a visit to Bluefield State on Wednesday, April 1. The Big Blues are one of the top teams in the Atlantic Region each year, finishing 13-9 last season and winning the region championship, while the women's team was 6-16 overall last year. Tusculum earned a sweep of Bluefield State last season, winning the men's match 4-2 over the 34th-ranked Big Blues while the women swept their way to a 7-0 victory.
The Pioneers will host Montreat in an exhibition match on Friday, April 3 and then will square off with Queens on Sunday, April 5 in the final home match of the season. The Queens men went 14-6 overall and 8-2 in the SAC last year, losing to Wingate in the SAC championship match and in the first round of the NCAA regionals. The Royals women were 14-5 overall and 8-2 in conference play, falling to Wingate in the conference semifinals and to North Georgia in the first round of NCAAs. The Pioneers swept the nationally-ranked Royals last season in Charlotte, as the men beat 16th-ranked Queens 4-3 and the women downed the 17th-ranked Royals 5-2.
Tusculum's regular season will come to an end on Wednesday, April 8 at Carson-Newman. The Eagle men were 2-8 in conference action last season and 3-17 overall, while the women went 9-10 overall and 5-5 in conference play, losing to Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC quarterfinals. The Pioneers swept the Eagles at home last March, winning the men's match 7-0 and taking a 6-1 victory in the women's contest.
The top eight teams in the men's and women's standings will participate in the SAC Tennis Championships. Quarterfinal matches will be hosted on campus sites on Tuesday, April 14 (women) and Wednesday, April 15 (men), with the semifinals and finals on April 17-18 at the Rock Hill Tennis Center.
