Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 | Box Score 3 | Box Score 4 HARROGATE, Tenn. – The Lincoln Memorial University men's tennis team rebounded from losing their opener to take their next two matches on the weekend. Meanwhile, the Lady Railsplitters continued their streak by winning a pair a matches themselves. The men move to 4-5, while the women are now 8-1 overall with both teams heading into their SAC lid-lifter net Saturday at home against Coker. First serve is set for 1 p.m. outdoors at the Poteat Tennis Complex. 
 
The women will also be hosting one more non-conference match on Thursday at 300pm against the University of Findlay (OH). 
 
After opening the weekend with a tough 4-1 loss to Bluefield State (WV) College Saturday morning, LMU's men took a 6-1 decision from West Virginia State in the afternoon. Sunday brought a 7-0 sweep of Bluefield (VA) College, completing a nine-match February homestand that allowed all 13 of LMU's roster players to get experience and some match toughness. The women took another step forward by defeating the Lady Blues 5-2 Saturday, and the Lady Rams by 4-0 score Sunday afternoon.
 
"We're very fortunate to have this facility here in Harrogate," said head coach Mark Walters. "Many of the teams that come here do so because we offer guaranteed play indoors, as well as multiple teams to play against. It's a benefit to us as well since we can get all 25-plus of our roster players matches with solid competition." 
 
Bluefield (WV) State brought in two teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last fall out of the Atlantic Region as a DII independent. The 'Splitters grabbed the early lead in both matches, winning the doubles points, but only the women were able to close the deal with clinching singles wins by Julia Valls, Valentina Ascarrunz, Amanda Dahlstrom, and Kushi Khandoji. The Men fell across the board in singles although Will Jonsson and Luca Pavan were both winning their matches when play was stopped with the clinching point by the Big Blues. The win was the sixth straight for the women going into Thursday's showdown with Findlay.
 
The men's match with Bluefield State was frustrating for LMU's players, but the head coach sees the growth in his team.
 
"We are just not quite there yet with the confidence to push back against some of the more experienced teams, but we're making progress," said Walters. "Winning the doubles, and then seeing our guys battle and support each other better than in any match all year, were very positive signs that we are learning to grind and fight. That willpower will come in handy when we start playing SAC matches next week."
 
A very positive sign for the coach was the way his troops bounced back against a fiery West Virginia State team in the afternoon after the Bluefield State loss—a match that started at 8 a.m. and lasted until 1 p.m. 
 
"Our guys were very professional and motivated against WVSU, and that was terrific to see since I know we were feeling it after two tough losses." LMU lost to Belmont Abbey on Thursday 7-0 despite winning four sets and having seven tie-break opportunities. "Add in the way they supported each other during their matches, and I can see we're making strides."
 
Both teams finished the weekend with the reserve teams besting Bluefield (VA) College. Harper Mills, Nic Goslar, Francisco Faggi and Jeanpaul Santamaria took singles against the Rams, while Claudia Rodriguez, Khandoji, and Haley White scored singles wins for the women.