Alabama
Ole Miss
No. 21 Alabama Sets Sights on Second Round Matchup in SEC Championships Against No. 26 Ole Miss on Thursday
4/17/2019 3:14:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The Crimson Tide and Rebels will square off for the third time this season on Thursday at 2 p.m. CT
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 21-ranked Alabama men's tennis team is prepared to take on No. 26 Ole Miss in the second round of the 2019 SEC Men's Tennis Championships on Thursday, April 18 at 2 p.m. CT at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville, Fla.
The Crimson Tide (15-9, 5-7 SEC) and Rebels (16-11, 5-7 SEC) have played each other twice already this season with Ole Miss coming out victorious in both matchups. Ole Miss first won 4-2 on Feb. 22 at the Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic and then again in Tuscaloosa, 4-3, on March 16.
In the latest Oracle/ITA Rankings senior Mazen Osama moved up six spots to No. 46 in singles, while he and doubles partner sophomore Patrick Kaukovalta moved up to No. 13 in the nation with a 13-7 record. The team came in at No. 21 in the country and will try and make an SEC Championship run as the top 16 teams in the nation will host a regional in the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament on May 3-5.
Junior Edson Ortiz leads the Crimson Tide this dual match season with a 15-5 record while primarily playing at the No. 2 and No. 3 spot in singles. Sophomore Jeremy Gschwendtner has been a consistent winner in the singles lineup after being inserted a few months ago. The London, England native, has an 11-3 mark in his first season of collegiate tennis.
Ole Miss moved up seven spots in the newest team rankings while the Rebels have one singles player ranked in No. 70 Tim Sandkaulen and two doubles pairs in No. 43 Fallert/Reynolds and No. 50 Kraljevic/Sandkaulen. Ole Miss has won five of its last seven matches to conclude the 2019 campaign. The Rebels lead the all-time series against Alabama 38-33, including winning five straight.
The match will have a live stream and live scoring available on GoGators.com. As the No. 8 and No. 9 seed matchup, the winner will advance to take on host No. 1 seed Florida on Friday at 2 p.m. CT.
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