Alabama Earns NCAA Tournament Berth, Set to Play UCF in Opening Round
5/2/2022 6:27:00 PM | Women's Tennis
The Crimson Tide will make its 17th appearance when it plays the Knights in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. –– Alabama women's tennis will make its 17th team appearance at the NCAA Tournament, the NCAA announced Monday. Alabama heads to Miami, Fla., to face UCF in the opening round of competition Friday at 9 a.m. CT.
Roll Tide Roll ??#RollTide | #LoveTheGrind pic.twitter.com/ZHYJ33Mjw4
— Alabama Women's Tennis (@AlabamaWTN) May 2, 2022
From Head Coach Jenny Mainz
"We're very excited about being selected to play in the NCAA Championships. It's a privilege to be picked as there are so many great, competitive teams. Our team has worked hard this season to improve with each match and it's fun to see the reward of making postseason play. We're looking forward to having another opportunity to grow and improve as a team."
The Crimson Tide will compete in its third consecutive NCAA Championship after qualifying in 2019 and 2021 (there was no NCAA Tournament in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). The appearance also marks the 15th berth under head coach Jenny Mainz, who has coached the Tide to seven of the last 10 tournaments.
Alabama enters the tournament with a 15-11 overall record and ranks 40th in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Rankings. During the season, the team upset then-No. 10 Georgia in a 4-3 home match to record both its first win over the Bulldogs and first win against a top-10 opponent since UA defeated then-No. 6 UGA 5-2 in 2015. The Crimson Tide opened the year with nine consecutive wins. It was the first time since 2018 that Alabama opened the dual season with a 9-0 start.
Petra Sedlackova and Loudmilla Bencheikh both hold national singles rankings at 67th and 69th, respectively. Sedlackova ended the season strong, defeating then-No. 25 and top player in Georgia's lineup, Lea Ma, as Bencheikh concluded the regular season as the Tide's No. 1 singles player and held a top-100 national ranking since March. In doubles, Sedlackova and Anna Parkhomenko concluded the year by winning three of four consecutive top-30 ranked doubles matches to enter the week at No. 63.
Alabama will face UCF for just the fourth time in program history as the Knights enter the tournament with a 15-7 record. The regional site will also feature ninth seed and regional host Miami (17-5) and Stetson (19-2), who will go head-to-head Friday at 12 p.m. CT.
Get the latest information on the team by following AlabamaWTN on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and Alabama Athletics on Facebook.
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