GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's tennis team heads to Florida this weekend to begin the spring portion of its 2023-24 schedule.
The Pioneers will be competing in the PTR Collegiate Cup at the Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Florida this weekend. Tusculum will play Georgia College on Saturday afternoon, and will play an opponent to be determined on Sunday.
Tusculum is the defending South Atlantic Conference regular-season champions, having gone 11-1 in league play last season and 17-7 overall. First-year head coach Tim Dunford has just seven players on his roster, but four received preseason all-SAC accolades in voting by the conference's head coaches.
Seniors Paulina Loretz and Valentina Loretz (San Mateo Atenco, Mexico) are four-year starters for the Pioneers in both singles and doubles. Valentina Loretz is a preseason second-team All-SAC selection in singles after going 23-7 last season for the Pioneers, including 9-3 in conference matches. She owns a career record of 49-21 in singles and 47-17 in doubles for the Pioneers. Paulina Loretz is also preseason second-team All-SAC in singles, and is coming off a 19-11 season last year that including a 9-2 mark in SAC competition. She is 50-32 all-time in singles and 45-32 in doubles at Tusculum.
Junior Elodie Baechler (La Rippe, Switzerland) has moved back to the top of the lineup for the Pioneers after going 17-9 overall last season, primarily at flights three and four. Baechler is also a preseason second-team All-SAC in singles and is a first-team All-Conference selection in doubles after going 13-5 overall and 10-0 in league play with Valentina Loretz. Baechler is 33-32 in singles for the Pioneers and has a 36-30 record in doubles competition.
Sophomore Ylva Frafjord Landa (Sandnes, Norway) had a strong freshman season for the Pioneers, going 16-11 overall and 8-2 in conference play. Landa went 8-1 for the Pioneers during the fall portion of the schedule and is a third-team preseason All-SAC selection.
Senior Johanna Palacio (Mar del Plata, Argentina) is back in the singles lineup for the Pioneers after going 6-1 last season. Palacio, who was 12-9 in singles as a sophomore mostly at flight six, is 23-15 entering the spring season for Tusculum.
Freshmen Thilda Danielsson (Ahus, Sweden) and Johanna Selde (Bjarred, Sweden) are newcomers to the Pioneers this season. Danielsson joined the program at the semester break, while Selde played in the fall and went 4-0 in singles and 4-2 in doubles.
Tusculum plays its home opener on Wednesday, Feb. 21 against North Georgia starting at noon at the Nichols Tennis Complex.
