WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Following an 11-day hiatus, the William and Mary women's tennis team returns to action with a home match against No. 58-ranked Georgia State on Friday, April 5, before hitting the road to meet No. 39 VCU on Tuesday, April 9. The Green and Gold host the Panthers at 3 p.m. on Friday at the Millie West Tennis Facility, weather permitting, before it travels to Richmond to face the Rams at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

The Green and Gold closed out a five-match road swing by splitting a pair of matches in Houston, Texas, March 23-24. The Tribe dropped a 5-2 decision to No. 27 Rice, before knocking off Houston, 5-2, to close out the trip. Juniors Jeltje Loomans (No. 3) and senior Anik Cepeda (No. 4) each tallied singles wins against the Owls, while juniors Maria Belaya (No. 1), Hope Johnson (No. 5) and Sydney Smith (No. 6) joined Loomans (No. 3) in the win column against the Cougars. W&M also captured the doubles point vs. Houston as the No. 5-ranked team in the country of Belaya and Loomans won at No. 1, while Cepeda and Johnson tallied a victory at the second spot. Following the split in Houston, the Green and Gold sits at 13-4 on the year and is ranked No. 46 nationally. Cepeda and freshman Leeza Nemchinov continue to lead the Tribe in singles wins on the season with 22 and 19, respectively, while Belaya is not far behind with 17 wins, including nine at the No. 1 post. In doubles, Belaya and Loomans have been dominant posting a 22-3 ledger with 13 wins at No. 1.

Georgia State enters the match with the Tribe at 6-8 overall after having both its contests cancelled last weekend in Louisville, Ky. The Panthers are currently ranked No. 58 nationally, but have been ranked as high as No. 38 this season. Included in GSU's win total are victories over then-No. 72 Syracuse and No. 40 Oklahoma State, but more recently, the Panthers suffered setbacks at South Florida and No. 14 Clemson on March 23-24. After spending the previous seven seasons in the Colonial Athletic Association, Georgia State moved into the Sun Belt Conference starting this season for women's tennis. Abigail Tere-Apisah is the Panthers top player as she is currently ranked No. 37 nationally after being as high as No. 22. She owns a 19-8 overall mark, including an 11-3 ledger at the No. 1 singles position. Tere-Apisah and Masa Grgan comprise the Panthers' top doubles team. The duo is ranked No. 68 nationally and is 17-4 overall, including a 10-3 mark at the No. 1 post. W&M leads the all-time series with Georgia State at 5-2, but the Panthers won the last meeting between the teams, 4-2, as part of the 2012 ITA Kickoff Weekend in Atlanta, Ga.

The Rams enter the week on a seven-match winning streak, pushing their season ledger to 16-4. VCU, which had been a part of the CAA since 1996 but joined the Atlantic 10 this season, will host Georgia State at home on April 6, before welcoming the Tribe to Richmond on April 9. All four Ram losses this season have come to teams currently among the top 35 in the country. VCU suffered setbacks to No. 1 North Carolina, No. 18 Virginia, No. 29 South Carolina and No. 33 Penn State. Most recently, VCU, which is ranked No. 39 nationally, beat Pitt, 7-0, and Marshall, 5-1, in Huntington, W. Va., on March 30-31. Cindy Chala is VCU's top player, coming in at No. 103 nationally with a record of 12-4 at the No. 1 singles post. W&M leads the all-time series with VCU at 35-9, including a 6-3 mark in Richmond. Last season, VCU tallied a 6-1 victory in Williamsburg after the Tribe recorded a 4-3 win in Richmond during the 2011 season.

- As a result of two wins at the No. 3 singles position against No. 27 Rice and Houston, junior Jeltje Loomans was named the CAA Singles Player of the Week on March 26. It marks the 10th weekly CAA award in Loomans' career and her third singles accolade. Twice this season, Loomans and junior Maria Belaya have been named the CAA Doubles Team of the Week.

- The Tribe doubles team of juniors Maria Belaya and Jeltje Loomans continued to be ranked in the national top 5 in the latest rankings released on March 26. The duo owns a 22-3 mark overall, including a 13-2 dual-match ledger. The pair has been ranked among the top five doubles teams in the country throughout the spring season, including being ranked as high as No. 2.

- W&M will host the 2013 CAA Tennis Championships at the Millie West Tennis Facility, April 19-21. It marks the eighth time that W&M has hosted the women's championship and the fifth time it welcomes the men's event. The quarterfinals will be on Friday, April 19, with the semifinals to follow on Saturday, April 20, and the championship on Sunday, April 21. The top two seeds will receive an opening round bye on the men's side, while the No. 1 seed in the women's tournament earns a bye into the semifinals.