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COLUMBUS – The Columbus State University men's and women's tennis teams will go for back-to-back championships, as the Peach Belt Conference Tournament gets underway on Friday. The tournament is being played at Francis Marion in Florence, S.C.
 
The fourth-ranked and top-seeded CSU women will take on eighth-seeded Francis Marion Friday morning at 9 a.m., while the third-ranked and top-seeded men will play eighth-seeded North Georgia at 1 p.m.
 
The Lady Cougars won the program's first PBC Tournament title in 2017 and will enter the 2018 championship as the favorite to make it two in a row. CSU put together a 19-2 record during the regular season and was a perfect 9-0 in conference play. The Lady Cougars defeated swept six of their nine conference opponents 9-0, while winning the other three matches 8-1.
 
Columbus State and Francis Marion met back on March 31 at the John W. Walden Tennis Center, with the Lady Cougars taking down the Patriots 9-0. CSU won all three doubles matches by an 8-3 score before tallying six straight-set wins in singles play.
 
The Cougar men have a repeat opportunity as well after winning the 2017 conference tournament title. The Cougars will be going for their third tournament crown in the last five seasons. CSU ended the regular season on a seven-match winning streak with a 19-3 overall record. The Cougars were unbeaten in nine PBC matches, with no match closer than 7-2.
 
North Georgia has lost four in a row entering Friday's match, including an 8-1 defeat at the hands of the Cougars on April 8. Columbus State rolled to three doubles wins and won five of the six singles matches.
 
The quarterfinal round will be played on Friday, with the semifinals on Saturday and championship matches on Sunday. All women's matches will be played at 9 a.m. throughout the weekend, with the men's matches scheduled for 1 p.m.