LORETTO, Pa. – The Saint Francis men's and women's tennis teams, led by Head Coach Rob Castille, begin their spring seasons this weekend.  The Red Flash has dual matches at Howard on Friday and Navy on Saturday.  Friday's matches begin at 11:30 a.m.  On Saturday, the women's team plays at 2 p.m., while the men's team plays at 6 p.m.
 
On the men's side, juniors Plamen Avuski (Plovdiv, Bulgaria /Math High School ) and Rodrigo Tico (Guadalajara, Mexico/Colegio de Bachilleres) lead the team with five wins each.  Sophomore Alec Dylan Foo-Kune (Phoenix, Mauritius/International Connections Academy (Md.)) and Jan Vit Suntar (Cerklje na Gorenjskem, Slovenia/Gimnazija Kranj) each have four victories this year, while junior Eli Cerdan (Bloomfield, N.J. /Saint Mary High School) has three and freshman Robin van der Heijden (Burgh Haamstede, Netherlands/Scheldmond College) has two.
 
In doubles, Avuski and Suntar was the top pair in the fall, with two wins. 
 
It is also the first match of the season for Howard, who went 3-13 overall last season.  Navy takes on Penn earlier on Saturday, but finished 2015 with a 20-11 mark and made the NCAA Tournament after winning the Patriot League championship. 
 
On the women's side, freshmen Raksha Bode (Reunion, Fla./Florida Virtual School) and Stephanie Miller (Washington, D.C./St. John's College High School) and senior Dani Gryckiewicz (Calgary, Alberta/Calgary Academy) each have four wins overall to lead the squad.  Junior Brittany Plaszewski (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) won three matches during the fall, while senior Rafaela Panizza (Jundiai, Brazil) earned one victory. 
 
In doubles, Bode and Gryckiewicz combined for three wins, while Panizza and Plaszewski teamed up for two.
 
The Howard women's team went 7-7 last season and will play its first match of the season this weekend.  Navy, who plays William & Mary and St. Bonaventure before taking on the Red Flash, went 20-7 last year and reached the Patriot League Championship match.