HAMMOND – The undefeated Southeastern Louisiana women's tennis team will open Southland Conference play with a pair of road matches this week.
 
The Lions (9-0) open the week at new league member Oral Roberts (1-5, 0-1 Southland) on Friday at 1 p.m. in Tulsa, Okla. Southeastern then heads to Central Arkansas (6-9, 0-2 Southland) on Saturday for a 12 p.m. league match.
 
Southeastern closed out its pre-conference schedule with victories over in-state foes Southern and Xavier (N.O.) on Sunday at the Southeastern Tennis Complex. The Lions opened the day with a 6-1 win over SU, before dropping the Gold Nuggets, 7-0, in the night cap.
 
Through the first nine matches, Southeastern has posted an impressive 47-6 team record in singles play. Freshman Nastya Tokareva (9-0), freshman Renee Villarreal (7-0), senior Isabel Brito (6-0) and sophomore Adriana Castillo (2-0) are all undefeated for the Lions. Freshman Reginka Nychytailova (8-1), junior Valya Rusakova (7-2) and freshman Sarah Kriem (5-1) are the other top singles players for Southeastern.
 
In doubles play, the Lions head into league play with a 14-1 team record. On the No. 3 court, Villarreal and Castillo have posted a team-best 6-0 record. Kriem and Nychytailova (5-0) are also unbeaten in doubles play, competing primarily at the No. 1 spot.
 
Oral Roberts has lost its last two matches. Marizanne Bouwer has a team-best 3-3 singles record, while she and Rachel Scroggs have teamed for a 3-3 doubles mark to lead the Golden Eagles.
 
Central Arkansas is led by Allison Murphy and Krizia Buck who both have matching 9-5 singles marks. Anna Buyukyan and Kristina Horsikyan have a team-best 10-4 doubles mark, playing mostly at No. 3. The Lions will be looking to avenge last season's 5-2 loss to UCA in Hammond.
 
Following this weekend's trip, Southeastern returns home to play its next eight matches at home. That home stand opens with a 6 p.m. match versus Youngstown State on Tuesday, March 12 at the Southeastern Tennis Complex.