The Eastern’s men’s and women’s tennis teams travel to Morehead, Ky., today to face Ohio Valley Conference foe Morehead State.

But it won’t be just a regular conference match.

Eastern junior Jordan Nestrud said there is no love lost between the two teams.

“It’s just a team we don’t really like, and they don’t really like us either,” Nestrud said. “We’d like to try and get under their skin.”

Emotions aside, the match should prove competitive because both teams have played well recently. Eastern’s men’s team has won five of its last seven matches, and Morehead State’s men’s team has won four of its last five.

Eastern head tennis coach John Blackburn said he attributes the Panthers’ recent surge to having the right attitude during matches and improving doubles play.

“We’re a lot more mentally tough than we were at the start of the year,” Blackburn said. But Blackburn did not discount the abilities of the Eagles’ men’s team.

“They’re a very young team and very talented,” Blackburn said.

The Eagles only have two upperclassmen on their roster to go along with three freshmen and three sophomores.

Morehead State sophomore Charles Williams has the best record (8-3) for the Eagles playing at both No. 5 and No. 6 singles.

Additionally, both teams have split their first two OVC matches and will try to break out in league play.

Nestrud said winning today against Morehead State and again against Eastern Kentucky on Friday would be important early in conference play.

“It would put us in a good position and help us out in the long run,” Nestrud said.

Eastern defeated MSU 5-2 during their last match on March 10, 2007. Eastern has an overall record of 7-6, while the Eagles enter today’s match at 6-6 on the season.

If history is any indicator, the women’s match between Eastern and Morehead State should be a hard-fought contest. Eastern’s women’s team and the Eagles have split their last two matches. Morehead State defeated Eastern 4-3 during the 2006 season. Last season, the Panthers won the match 6-1.

Eastern junior Natalie Martin said she considered last season’s match an emotional one.

“It was a battle on an off the court,” said Martin.

Martin said both teams are a little on the vocal side, which added to the intensity off the court.

Blackburn praised the quality of tennis the teams have brought during regular-season OVC during his two matches at Eastern.

“It’s been a very good match the two years I’ve been here,” Blackburn said. “There’s been a lot of energy.”

Morehead State is coming off two strong OVC wins last weekend at home. The Eagles defeated Southeast Missouri 4-3 on Saturday morning and swept Tennessee State 7-0 the same afternoon. Those two wins put the Eagles one match ahead of Eastern in conference play, after the Panthers split their matches last weekend against Tennessee Martin and Tennessee Tech.

However, Eastern’s women’s team had more success than MSU during its pre-conference schedule and has compiled an overall record of 8-3. Morehead State’s record stands at 6-8.

JC Clark can be reached at 581-7944 or at jrclark2@eiu.edu.