Women's tennis team to compete at Region 8 Championships

The Eastern Florida State College women's tennis team will open the FCSAA/Region 8 Women's Tennis Championships Thursday morning at Tejas Pradip Patel HCC Tennis Center in Tampa.

The tournament, hosted by Hillsborough Community College, will begin with singles matches at 9 a.m. on Thursday.

The Titans come into the tournament ranked sixth in the ITA national rankings and are playing some good tennis, winning five of the last six matches. In that stretch the players have gone on individual streaks as well.

Elena Martinez Prado is 4-1 in the last six No. 1 singles matches, winning all four in straight sets. Teammate Emma Sanchez was 4-1 at No. 2 singles while Lucia Lucas was 4-2.

The bottom three in the lineup have been the hottest players as Maria Gento and Thais Mitlmeier are both 5-1 in last six and Sara Ladino is 4-1.

In doubles, the team of Sanchez and Lucas will play at No. 1 with Gento and Mitlmeier at No. 2 and Ladino and Martinez are playing No. 3 doubles.

The tournament, which features three teams in the top six in the nation, will begin on Thursday with the finals scheduled for Friday. The NJCAA Division I Women's Tennis National Tournament will begin May 4 in Tyler, Texas.