Jags look to serve up fifth SWAC title

Every team has one goal and that’s the championship. For the women’s tennis team, five in a row would establish them as a dynasty in Southern history. The undefeated Southwestern Athletic Conference western division champions are on their way to making this possible.
“I’m so excited,” said Francisca Osedumme. “I never felt this way. This year I can’t explain it. I just can’t wait until the day of the match.”
Osedumme expresses excitement as the women’s tennis team (10-6 overall, 9-0 SWAC) prepare for the SWAC Tennis Championship this weekend at the City Park Tennis Complex in Alexandria. Their first match will be Saturday at 2 p.m. They will play the winner of the Texas Southern — Alabama State match.
“We prepare at the beginning of the semester and now everybody is going to the weight room basically trying to work on their weakness,” Osedumme said. “I don’t like going to the weight room, I go to the track and run.”
Both tennis teams played their last match of the season last Tuesday against Southeastern Louisiana University. The women lost 6-1 and the men lost 4-0. Osedumme, one of the four seniors of the team and a leading singles player in the SWAC with a 10-4 record, takes the loss as a practice match for the tournament.
“SWAC schools can’t compare to schools like Southeastern, those games are good to prepare us for the SWAC championship,” Osedumme said. “It just launches my confidence.”
Head coach Jeff Conyers expresses how proud he is of both teams and that the loss against SLU was a good way for the men’s season to end as preparation for next season. As for the women, the next step is getting ready for the championship.
“We’ve been in the same mind setting since the beginning of the season,” Conyers said. “The goals were set early, they are just are trying to achieve their goal.”