SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The men's tennis team takes to the road after a homestand the last two weeks saw them go 3-2 at Fair Oaks Tennis Center.  The Owls (10-9, 1-4 A-Sun) first face off with USC Upstate (9-8, 2-4 A-Sun) on Friday before heading to first-place East Tennessee State (9-8, 6-0 A-Sun) on Saturday.

In the opener, the Owls will be facing a Spartan squad which is coming off of a difficult 4-3 loss to Lipscomb to fall a half game behind the Bison in the hunt for the No. 6 spot in the conference standings and a spot in the conference tournament.  The Owls sit a half game behind the Spartans in a three-way tie for the No. 8 spot, but own the tiebreak edge over Lipscomb after downing the Bison two weeks ago.

"Needless to say, this is an important match in the playoff chase," commented Owls Head Coach #T.J. Greggs#, "This is a match which can go either way, and we know we're facing a well-coached and top-heavy team.  Everyone will need to give 100% effort in this match for us to come out on top."

The Spartans are led by senior Ramiro Blanco (12-3, 3-3 A-Sun) at the top spot, followed by Matthias Kidler (10-6, 3-3 A-Sun), and another member of the Blanco family, Gonzalo (11-5, 5-1 A-Sun).  The Owls have had a variety of players contribute throughout the season, with Louis Theodor (11-7, 2-3 A-Sun), Gianni Kubin (11-7, 3-2 A-Sun) and Alexander Pena (10-7, 2-3 A-Sun) leading the team in victories.

"We've been winning at lots of different spots this season," continued Greggs.  "We just need more consistency and having the entire team play well on the same day."

In the second match of the weekend, the Owls will be looking to upset the perennial powerhouse of the Atlantic Sun Conference in ETSU.  The Bucs have won nine straight matches after starting the season 0-8.  Four of their singles players are undefeated in the conference this season, including Bucs No. 1, Sander Gille.  They have won five consecutive Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Championships.

Friday's match at Upstate will begin at 2:00 p.m. while the Bucs and Owls will face off at noon in Johnson City, Tennessee.