Lady Flames and Ospreys Voted Co-Favorites in ASUN Preseason Poll
1/7/2020 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
2020 ASUN Women's Tennis Preseason Coaches Poll
For a second straight year, the Liberty women's tennis squad has been selected to finish first in the ASUN Conference, along with North Florida, in the 2020 ASUN Women's Tennis Preseason Coaches Poll.
The Lady Flames received a pair of first-place votes and 56 total points in the poll, which was unveiled on Tuesday morning. Five-time defending ASUN champion North Florida totaled five first-place votes and 56 points as well to share the top spot with Liberty for a second straight season.
Rounding out the poll were Florida Gulf Coast (third, 50 points), Stetson (fourth, one first-place vote, 41 points), Lipscomb (fifth, 31 points), NJIT (sixth, 28 points), Kennesaw State (seventh, 18 points) and North Alabama (eighth, eight points).
The Lady Flames will begin ASUN play on March 26 versus NJIT, followed by a home bout versus FGCU on March 28. Liberty's conference slate also includes a road match against the UNF Ospreys on April 2. Liberty will serve as the host for the 2020 ASUN Women's Tennis Championship, April 24-26 at the Cook Tennis Center. The winner will earn an automatic bid to the 2020 Division I Women's Tennis Championship.
The ASUN released the full list of conference matches on Dec. 18. The rest of Liberty's 2020 spring slate will be announced later this week.
In 2019, the Lady Flames earned a share of the ASUN regular-season crown and the No. 1 seed for the ASUN Women's Tennis Championship by going 6-1 in their first year in the conference. Liberty posted a 15-7 overall record last season.
Liberty's spring 2020 roster features one senior (Kalani Soli), three juniors (Caisey Lee Emery, Nasha Ghajar and Grace Hashiguchi), one sophomore (Alexandra Almborg) and five freshmen (Kelly Lewis, Esther Lovato, Tiffany Nguyen, Micaela Ode Mitre and Eloise Saraty).
2020 ASUN Conference Women's Tennis Preseason Coaches Poll
Team (first-place votes) Total Points
T-1. Liberty (2) 56
T-1. North Florida (5) 56
3. FGCU 50
4. Stetson (1) 41
5. Lipscomb 31
6. NJIT 28
7. Kennesaw State 18
8. North Alabama 8
.@OspreyMTEN & @LibertyWTennis chosen as favorites to win the 2020 Championship in the Women's #ASUNTennis Preseason Poll??????
— #ASUNTennis (@ASUNTennis) January 7, 2020
??: https://t.co/o8Wn530bZE pic.twitter.com/KPI6q7lnD2
