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A spirit that is not afraid

Women's tennis still fighting for first win of the season

The women's tennis team faces off against Alabama A&M and the University of Memphis Saturday at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.

They will be the first home matches of the season for the Tigers.

The matches will be at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively.

Auburn has not posted a win so far this season, but each of the team's four losses was to a ranked opponent, said head coach Tim Gray.

"We have the players who can play at this level, but they just have to believe that they can play and belong at this level," Gray said.

Out of eight women on Auburn's team, four are freshmen, three are sophomores and one is a junior.

"We are a young team, and we are still learning," said Taylor Schreimann, the sole junior on the team. "It's not that we aren't doing well, we just need more experience. There's a lot of room to grow."

Auburn will square off Saturday against a Memphis team that is also mostly made up of underclassmen.

The Memphis Tigers (3-4) have struggled on the road as well, losing each of their four away matches.

In practice this week, Auburn has been focusing on fundamentals and playing at a high level, Gray said.

"We've been practicing with the mentality that we're going to rebound and take these matches this next weekend," Schreimann said. "We started the week off positively in practice and are carrying it throughout the week, so we are all positive and ready to go.

"I really think this past weekend we improved on managing our emotions and working the points and fighting."

Last weekend, Auburn lost to both Florida State and Georgia Tech.

Against Georgia Tech, freshman Olivia Bennett lost 6-4, 6-4 to Sasha Krupina.

"It was just a matter of one break in each set," Bennett said. "I think I did well, and I think with more experience I will be able to pull out closer wins like that next time."

Sophomore Paulina Schippers boasts the No. 1 position for Auburn.

During the fall, Schippers had a 6-3 singles record and won back-to-back matches at the SEC Fall Coaches' Classic.

Memphis freshman Kathleen Hawkins is on a five-match winning streak and has the best record on the team at 5-2.

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Hawkins plays in the No. 5 position.

"Even though we lost our last two matches, we just need to keep our heads up and keep looking for the win because hard work will pay off in the end," Bennett said.

"I believe that if we keep going the way we are going, good things will come."


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