Alabama Netmen Ready For NCAA Tournament Opener
5/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
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RICHMOND, Va. - The University of Alabama men’s tennis team wrapped up preparations for their opening round NCAA Championships with Texas A&M in Richmond, Va. on Friday.
In the four-team region, the No. 3 seed Crimson Tide will play the 2nd-seeded Aggies at 10 a.m. at the Thahlimer Center. Host and No. 1 seed Virginia Commonwealth will face No. 4 seed Richmond in the afternoon match, with the winners meeting on Saturday.
“Undoubtedly, we are the underdog,” Alabama head coach Billy Pate said. “We’ll need to play with emotion and have our seniors come through for us. We’re capable of winning the match and if we play up to our ability I think we can be successful.”
Texas A&M is currently ranked 24th in the country with a 22-8 (8-2 Big 12) record and the nations No. 13 (Lester Cook) and No. 32 (Ante Matijevic) singles player and the No. 2 doubles squad in the country (Cook/Matijevic).
Alabama (10-14, 2-9 SEC) is ranked 40th by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. Tide senior Stephen Mitchell is Alabama’s only ranked singles player at No. 42. Mitchell and fellow senior Chris Gostek are ranked No. 48 in doubles.
Alabama dropped a 6-1 decision to the Aggies last season, but the match took place in College Station, Texas in front of their notoriously hostile crowd. In its fourth straight NCAA appearance, the Tide is trying to match last season’s trip to the championship site in the round of 16 in Pate’s first year as head coach.
PRACTICE PHOTOS:
Tom McVey
Mike Green
Assistant Mario Rincon and Head Coach Billy Pate
Stephen Mitchell
Chris Gostek
