Liberty to Host Longwood in Doubleheader, Sunday
2/6/2021 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Live Scoring: Liberty vs. Longwood (Match 1)
Live Scoring: Liberty vs. Longwood (Match 2)
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The Liberty Lady Flames tennis squad will play their first two home matches of the 2021 season on Sunday. Liberty will take on Longwood in a doubleheader, with matches set to begin at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. at Crosswhite Athletic Club.
This will be the first match for Liberty (2-0) since a 6-1 victory over Mercer in a neutral site match in Peachtree Corners, Ga., Jan. 24. These will be the first two matches of the season for Longwood.
Despite being only separated by one hour, the two teams have not met since 2018 during Liberty's final season in the Big South Conference. In that match on April 3, 2018, the Lady Flames swept the Lancers 7-0 in Farmville, Va. Liberty holds a 13-4 edge in the all-time series and has won eight straight meetings.
Attendance
Liberty's indoor matches at Crosswhite Athletic Club will be closed to the public, this spring. Attendance will be limited to teams, officials, athletic training staffs and personnel essential to hosting the event. Fans are encouraged to follow live scoring for the matches and stay tuned to Liberty Women's Tennis social media accounts for live in-match updates.
Lady Flames News and Notes
• Liberty is off to a strong start in both singles (10-2) and doubles (5-1) in 2021. Alexandra Almborg (No. 1), Esther Lovato (No. 4), Grace Hashiguchi (No. 5) and Micaela Ode Mitre (No. 6) are each 2-0 in singles so far. The doubles teams of Ode Mitre and Tiffany Nguyen (No. 2) and Hashiguchi and Marina Davtyan (No. 3) are both 2-0 as well.
• The Lady Flames were selected to finish second in the ASUN Women's Tennis Preseason Coaches Poll, behind only five-time defending champion North Florida. Liberty will not play an ASUN match until March 19 on the road at North Alabama.
• Lovato, a 2020 VaSID All-State singles second team honoree, is off to an impressive start to her Liberty career with a 20-5 singles record. Her .800 winning percentage places her in a tie for third in program history for best winning percentage among Liberty players with 20 or more victories.
• Liberty is 21-3 at home since the start of the 2018 season.
• A win in Sunday's first match would give the Lady Flames their first 3-0 start since 2014. Liberty has never started a season with a 4-0 record.
