Posted: Aug 12, 2014

Tennis Hall of Fame highlights Seahawk schedule

Salve Regina women's tennis hosts the 30th edition of the Grass Court Championships at the Tennis Hall of Fame.

NEWPORT, R.I. - With the history of the sport on display year-round in Newport, what better setting than the Tennis Hall of Fame for Salve Regina University women's tennis to host its annual Grass Court Doubles Championships.

The event started in 1984 and has been held at the Tennis Hall of Fame for 28 years. It has been cancelled twice due to rain and once the indoor hard courts were used at the Newport Casino. Site of the first United States championships in 1881, the historic grass courts have served as the setting for the only collegiate competition at a sports hall of fame.

"What a signature event for the university," said Salve Regina head coach Cory Tusler.

Tusler, who enters his second season as head coach with the Seahawks in 2014-15, opens with two Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) matches on the road (at Western New England - September 6; at Gordon - September 9) before facing Eastern Nazarene in the team's home opener on Friday, September 12.

The next day is the 30th annual Grass Court Doubles Championships. Salve Regina hosts seven other schools including defending champion Division I College of the Holy Cross.

Two more conference road trips follow before the Seahawks welcome back familiar face in Erin Phillips on Saturday, September 27. The former Seahawk number one singles player is in her second season as head coach of Wentworth Institute of Technology, and her Leopards battle the Seahawks at 1 p.m.

Three straight home matches include the first two opponents of October (three-time defending champion Endicott and Nichols). The Bison are the guests on Fall Festival Weekend for the Seahawks (October 3-5).

Weather permitting, conference tournament action will take place the following week (October 7-11).

Salve Regina concludes its fall season with a pair of non-league matches with Little East ties - Rhode Island College and UMass Dartmouth.

Tusler, who also coaches the men's tennis program at Salve Regina, has already scheduled a pair of matches for spring break (March 7-17, 2015) with the Seahawks traveling to Tampa, Fla., to face Eckerd College and St. Leo's University.

"Seahawk Tennis is ready for an exciting fall season, with competition from the Commonwealth Coast Conference and our Grass Court Doubles Championships hosted at The Tennis Hall of Fame. We welcome eight retuning players from last year and two newcomers, Julie Marciniak and Courtney Bailey. Our motto - 'Keep the ball in play or put it away.'"

Salve Regina women's tennis starts its pre-season camp on Friday, August 22.