MARIETTA, Ga. - The 2nd Annual KSU Fall Invitational tennis tournament will get underway tomorrow at the Universal Tennis Academy in nearby Marietta.  The tournament, hosted by the Owls, will feature Florida A&M, Chattanooga, Georgia Southern, and the Owls.  Last year's event was canceled due to rain, but the forecast for this weekend is clear and sunny.

"We are really looking forward to hosting some great teams this weekend," commented men's coach and tournament director T.J. Greggs.  "Coach (Olga) Elkin will have her hands full, as all three of our guests have solid lineups and should provide our girls with some stiff competition."

The tournament will also serve as the debut for freshman Alexandra Apostu, who is seeing action for the first time after being cleared to play following rehab for ACL surgery last fall.  She will compete in singles and doubles for the Owls, partnering with senior Agatha Palider in the latter.

"I am really looking forward to seeing how Alex does in her first college tournament," indicated interim head coach Elkin.  "She is loaded with talent, but we're just telling her to go out and enjoy herself, as it's been a while since she has been able to compete in a tournament due to her injury."

Leading the way for the Owls will be top-seeded Vera Shkundina, who looks to add to her trophy case as she takes on the top players from all of the other schools.  In the opposite half of the top singles flight is junior Mackenzie Swindall, who last weekend became the first Owl to advance out of the first round of the ITA Regional Championships when she took out Georgia Southern's Ali Beavers in straight sets.  Beavers will also be featured in the top flight, and could end up facing Shkundina in the semifinals if both advance out of their first round matchups.  Other top players competing in the event include Emily Hangstefer and Jenna Nurik of Chattanooga and Deke Olagbegi of FAMU.

Also competing for the Owls is senior Ayano Tanaka, who will compete in the A2 flight of singles, as well as Morgan Carney and Therese Lagerkvist, who will both compete in the B1 singles flight, and pair up to compete in the B doubles flight.  Palider will also compete in singles, trying for a singles title in the B2 flight, while partnering with Apostu in A doubles.

"All of our girls have been working very hard heading into this tournament," added Elkin.  "If they play their best tennis, we could walk away from this tournament with some very good results."

Play begins on Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. at Universal Tennis Academy's home site in Marietta.  For directions, please visit www.utatennis.com.  For up to date draws throughout the event, visit the tournament website at the link below.  Admission is free to the public.

Tournament Site