Tide Hosts Auburn Saturday to Conclude Regular Season
4/14/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
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The University of Alabama women’s tennis team will close out the regular season this Saturday at 4 p.m. against rival Auburn at the UA Tennis Complex.
The Crimson Tide (7-13, 2-8 SEC) will look to strengthen its NCAA tournament resume with a win. Alabama is currently ranked 32nd by the ITA and sits in fourth place in the SEC’s Western Division.
“We have a significant challenge ahead of us,” Alabama head coach Jenny Mainz said. “We need to capitalize on our opportunities and finish the regular season strong and gain some confidence heading into the SEC Championships.”
Alabama is coming off a 4-3 loss to No. 30 South Alabama on Wednesday. Six of Alabama’s seven wins this season have come at home and Ashley Bentley has yet to lose at the UA Tennis Complex this spring. Overall, she is 9-1 at home. Bentley and teammate Robin Stephenson each claimed their 24th wins of the season against USA on Wednesday. Auburn (7-12, 0-10 SEC) will enter Saturday riding an 11-match losing streak.
Alabama and Auburn have split the last six meetings although the Crimson Tide holds a 23-20 all-time advantage in the series. Last season the two teams met twice within the same week and split each of those two meetings. Auburn won the regular season SEC finale 4-3, but Alabama eliminated the Tigers four days later from the SEC Championships with a 4-0 win.
Following the completion of the regular season on Saturday, draws for the SEC Championships, being held in Tuscaloosa, will be available. Alabama has secured a No. 4 seed in the SEC Championships and will play either Tennessee or South Carolina next Thursday at 2 p.m.
