MUNCIE, Ind. - The IUPUI women's tennis team opens the spring season this Friday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. as they take on the Ball State Cardinals in Muncie. The match will be the Jaguars' first of three this weekend. Following their match in Muncie, the Jaguars will travel to South Bend to play the Fighting Irish on Saturday and then to Dayton, Ohio where they'll face Wright State on Sunday. 

The Jaguars posted some strong results during the fall season including a 6-4 singles record from sophomore Bobbi Modesto. After their 6-1 loss to Ball State in 2013, they look to rebound before travelling to South Bend for a tough matchup against No. 21 ranked Notre Dame. 

"We have a short week of preparation for a very demanding opening weekend," said Head Coach Pat Nickell. "But it sets the tone for the season."

Starting the season with three matches in three days is tough, especially given a showdown on the road against a nationally ranked Notre Dame team, but a win in South Bend would get the Jaguars off to a great start to the spring season, especially given their slower fall. In addition to Modesto's six singles victories, Julie Brockman and Vanessa Whyte each added four, but the team finished with only a 36 percent singles match win percentage. 

After their match with Notre Dame, IUPUI will travel to Dayton to take on Wright State on Sunday at noon. IUPUI defeated Wright State 4-3 last year, but finished the season only 5-19.

Returning all of the starting six, this weekend serves as the Jaguars first big opportunity to improve on last year and surpass their preseason conference ranking of fifth.