UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's tennis team (4-3) is to return home after a three week away slate. The Nittany Lions will compete against Kentucky (4-2) at 10 a.m. and Saint Francis (4-2) at 5 p.m. E.T.
The match against Kentucky will be the "Wear Blue" game, and free coffee and donuts will be given to fans.
"Being on the road is always tough, but I always feel like every time we go on the road we get thicker skin," said head coach Alex Anghelescu. "It also makes us grateful for being here at home having our fans and having the atmosphere. I think that it gives us the energy as well, being at home and having our comfort. Being away gets us strong mentally, but physically, we're always better here and Happy Valley."
FOLLOW ALONG
Vs. Kentucky – Live Stream | Live Stats
Vs. Saint Francis – Live Stream | Live Stats
PREVIEWING PENN STATE
The Blue and White earned a pair of wins during its last weekend of play. Women's tennis defeated Marshall, 4-3, on Saturday, Feb. 4. Alexandra Nielsen clinched the match for the Nittany Lions with her 7-5, 7-5 singles win over Andjela Lopicic.
On Sunday, Feb. 5, the Nittany Lions defeated West Virginia handily, 6-1. Penn State took the doubles point and collected singles wins from Sofiya Chekhlystova, Ioana Gheorghita, Carla Girbau, Karly Friedland and Alina Lebedeva.
This week, Sofiya Chekhlystova moved up to No. 50 in ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings.
"I'm very excited to move up in the rankings," said Chekhlystova. "I've been working hard, and I am motivated to continue improving my game. There is still a lot to work on. I want to do my best to continue getting better. My teammates push me to get better, and this is definitely one of the reasons that have helped me achieve this."
WHAT ABOUT THE WILDCATS
The Kentucky women's tennis team is 4-2 on the season. The Wildcats lost their last match to Marshall 4-3.
Carla Girbau, a graduate student transfer for Penn State, will be competing against her former team, Kentucky.
SCOPING OUT SAINT FRANCIS
The Saint Francis women's tennis team is 4-2 on the season. The team's last match ended in a 5-2 win over St. Francis Brooklyn.
The match on Saturday will mark the first time ever that Penn State and Saint Francis compete in women's tennis.
"Even though we've never played St. Francis, we always look at teams that we've played before, and we have the same mentality that Penn State football has as the 1-0," said Anghelescu. "When I look at each match, it's as if it's a clean slate. With St Francis before, it's the same mentality that we have for each and every other match, whether it's home or away."
UP NEXT
Penn State will hit the road again to compete against Notre Dame on Friday, Feb. 17 and Illinois on Sunday, Feb. 19.
Keep up with the Penn State women's tennis team at GoPSUsports.com. For continued updates throughout the year, make sure to follow our Instagram @pennstatewtennis and Twitter @pennstateWTEN.
