Qualifying Draws Announced for All-American Tennis Championships
10/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Tulsa, Okla. ?? The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) released the qualifying draws for the Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tennis Championships on Sunday with Alabama's Billy Mertz selected to compete.
Mertz, a junior from Silver Spring, Md., will begin play at 8 a.m. on Monday. He will square off against 17th-seeded Blake Strode of Arkansas. Mertz has a record of 1-1 this fall after losing the quarterfinals at the UVA Fall Classic.
The Crimson Tide's Dan Buikema competed in the pre-qualifying this weekend. Buikema, a sophomore from Battle Creek, Mich., was eliminated with a loss in his first match to Drake's Sergi Vila, 6-3, 6-3.
The All-American Championships are taking place in Tulsa, Okla. at the University of Tulsa's Michael D. Case Tennis Center. Qualifying rounds will last until Wednesday with the main draw competition beginning on Thursday.
