Though each tournament the BG women’s tennis team participates in is important to them, there is one that they’ve been looking forward to all semester – this weekend’s tourney in Nashville.

The Falcons will travel south today to compete in the two-day Belmont Invitational.

‘We are very excited to experience Nashville [for it’s] country flavor, and see some famous sites including Belmont and Vanderbilt,’ said coach Penny Dean. ‘We are staying at the Grand Ole Opry Hotel, which is awesome.’

Nashville will be the Falcon’s third and final tournament for the fall portion of their season. In addition to country flavor, the women will also be experiencing competition for teams they have never played, according to Dean.

‘We will be playing some different teams and players,’ Dean said. ‘There will be all new teams to us from the south.’

According to Christine Chiricosta, her teammates are looking forward to the journey to Nashville as much as the destination ‘It’s going to be all new competition [in Nashville], and none will be teams we’ve played before,’ Chiricosta said. ‘It’s a different region of the country and will be a really fun drive. Traveling will make it difficult, but we’re excited to take a trip to Nashville together.’

In the past, Belmont University has played such schools as Cumberland (Tenn.), Western Kentucky and Florida Gulf Coast, all from the southern region of the country.

Freshman Jade Johnson is also looking forward to her first big trip with the Falcons.

‘Everyone on the team is excited for the Nashville tournament, because it is our first big road trip of the season and the first time anyone on our team has gotten the chance to compete in this tournament,’ Johnson said. ‘We get to play against different teams than we have before.’

The women will resume play Jan. 16 in Louisville.’