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In its first three conference series, the Terrapin softball team appears to have drawn the ACC's elite in succession.

The Terps (25-9, 1-5 ACC) didn't have much success against their first two conference foes - first-place North Carolina and second-place Virginia Tech. But the one win they did get against the Hokies, coupled with the sweep of Delaware State Wednesday, has them confident going into this weekend against third-place Florida State (30-13, 6-3).

"We've got to keep our heads up going through the ACC, especially since we're facing the toughest teams" coach Laura Watten said. "Florida State's been doing a whole lot better, and they're the team that really turns it on when they get to the conference. It's going to be a challenge, it's going to be a tough weekend, but it's not anything that we can't handle, nothing we can't win."

The Terps are 6-31 all-time against Florida State and have won only four of their last 26 matchups. The Terps' last victory over the Seminoles came in 2006, a 6-4 win in College Park.

- Jeff Newman

n Women's tennis picking things up

Slowly but surely, the Terrapin women's tennis team is starting to find its way in the ACC.

With tough matches throughout the conference schedule, the Terps have yet to crack the ACC win column. But coach Martin Novak feels good about the Terps' upcoming chances.

"They're starting to see that [winning matches] is doable," Novak said of his midfielder Kelly Kasper. "I think we do our best when we keep going and going, and the next couple of weeks we are going to have a lot of games; we benefit to keep going like that."

The Terps will begin their North Carolina three-step against a pair of unranked teams. So far this season the Terps have dismantled all non-ranked opponents, winning by an average of 9.25 goals per game. But, these contests may prove to be a lot closer than any of the others this season.

Last season, the Terps had difficulty with both then-No. 11 Penn State and Ohio State. The Terps squeaked by the Nittany Lions 10-9 when Dobbie scored a goal just before the last minute of the game to lift the Terps to victory. The Buckeyes also played a surprisingly tough match against the Terps before falling 16-12.

While most teams are most concerned with their opponents, the Terps' main concerns have been internal. After the gameless week of self-examination, the Terps are undaunted with their three-game stretch in Chapel Hill.

"This weekend coming up is a lot of fun; we get to play two games," coach Cathy Reese said. "It is tough to go back-to-back weekends, but we are looking forward to having two good games."

Although most teams would fret about such a scheduling quirk, the Terps have warmed up to the idea.

"We might as well just live down there for a couple of weeks," Kasper said. "That'd be nice; it's fun, it's great going down there it's nice and warm, and we get to play some good teams."

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