CLEVELAND, Miss. - The Delta State University men's and women's tennis team opens Gulf South Conference play this Friday, Feb. 15, as the Statesmen (1-0) and Lady Statesmen (0-1) host Shorter University at Cleveland Country Club. Match time is set for 1 p.m. Admission is free and every one is invited to attend.

"I was extremely proud of the way we competed on Tuesday versus Alcorn State," DSU head coach Bo Petro said. "We will need that same level of focus this Friday against a talented Shorter University team. I hope you will make plans to come out and support the Statesmen and Lady Statesmen this Friday at the Cleveland Country Club."

With the Statesmen coming off a 4-0 victory over the Braves on Tuesday, Friday's opponent will serve as a valuable gauge as the team moves deeper into the season. Shorter enters the match 2-1 after defeating Gadsden State Community College (7-0) and Fort Valley State (7-0). The Hawks' lone loss was to Georgia Southwestern State, 6-1, last Saturday. 

The Statesmen are looking to build off of Tuesday's big win over NCAA Division I Alcorn State. Hugo Stroppiana, Mason Vice and Leo De Sousa all claimed singles wins for the Statesmen versus the Braves.

The Lady Statesmen will be looking to rebound from a hard fought 4-2 loss to Alcorn State against Shorter. The Lady Hawks are 2-2 on the season with wins versus Gadsden State (7-0) and Fort Valley State (6-1), but SU has also suffered losses to Clark Atlanta (4-3) and Georgia Southwestern State (4-3). 

Fabiola Cardenas and Nathalia Stelzer turned in singles victories for the Lady Statesmen on Tuesday versus Alcorn State while Sophie St. Amant and Katheryne Valencia Perez won No. 3 doubles.

"We had several players step up on Tuesday versus Alcorn State and I'm looking for the rest of the squad to do the same on Friday versus Shorter," Petro added.

After Friday's match, the Lady Statesmen travel to Monroe, La., on Sunday to face the University of Louisiana-Monroe. The match is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m.

The Statesmen return to the court on March 1, as Delta State hosts Christian Brothers at the Cleveland Country Club.