Utica, NY – The Utica College women's tennis team is on the road Saturday for an Empire 8 contest against Houghton. The match is set to begin at 1 p.m.

Last Time Out: UC met up with SUNY Delhi in its last appearance, winning by a score of 7-2 on the road. Sara Gribanoff (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham), Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers), Shannon Fillmore (Somerset, NJ/Franklin), Christa Pham (Utica, NY/T.R. Proctor), and Bianca Bockhaus (Shenorock, NY/Somers) all earned victories in their singles flight and earned five out of six possible match points. Then in doubles competition, the pairs of Julianne Pieros (Alpha, NJ/Phillipsburg)/Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers) and Bianca Bockhaus (Shenorock, NY/Somers)/Christa Pham (Utica, NY/T.R. Proctor) won their matchups to improve the team's record to 2-4 overall.

Strong Performers: In singles play, the top two players on the team right now are Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers) and Shannon Fillmore (Somerset, NJ/Franklin). Zhang owns a singles record of 5-1 overall this season and is 3-1 against conference foes. Fillmore has been just as productive, also holding an overall record of 5-1 and is 3-1 in the E8. The duo of Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers)/Julianne Pieros (Alpha, NJ/Phillipsburg) has been dominant in doubles play. The two teammates currently have a 5-0 record overall and are 3-0 in the conference during doubles competition.

Scouting Houghton: The Highlanders are sitting at a record of 2-3 overall and are 1-3 within the Empire 8. The team is playing SUNY Brockport on Friday, looking to improve its record before its matchup with UC. In its last appearance, Houghton lost to Stevens, 9-0, in conference play. The Highlanders' last win came at the expense of Pitt-Bradford, by a score of 8-1.

Against Houghton: The last time these two teams met, Houghton just slipped past UC to earn the 5-4 win. Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers) and Shannon Fillmore (Somerset, NJ/Franklin) both earned wins in singles play but the team came up short. The Pioneers will be looking for its first victory against Houghton in over ten years.

Looking Ahead: Utica will return home for more Empire 8 action on September 27^th, to host St. John Fisher. This in-conference battle is scheduled to start at 4 p.m.