University of Tennessee Athletics
Simon Rea Achieves Career-High in Latest ITA Singles Rankings
April 23, 2003 | Men's Tennis
April 23, 2003
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Vol junior Simon Rea moved up one place to achieve a career-best singles ranking of No. 24 in the country in the most recent Omni Hotels/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings, which were released Wednesday. In the team rankings however, Tennessee dropped four spots to No. 52.
Rea, who was listed at No. 25 in the April 9, singles poll, recorded an upset victory over No. 11-ranked Rameez Junaid during the Vols' loss to Auburn in the first round of the SEC Tournament last week. Rea has compiled an overall season singles record of 26-8, including an impressive 9-5 mark against ranked opponents. He garnered second-team All-SEC honors and will likely earn a spot in next month's NCAA singles championship.
Mark Dietrich, Tennessee's only other ranked singles player, fell five places to No. 55 following losses against Georgia and Auburn. The sophomore from Memphis received second-team All-SEC recognition after racking up an 18-16 singles record. He led the Vols this season with 17 doubles wins.
Dietrich and doubles partner Wade Orr comprise Tennessee's only ranked doubles pairing. The Vols' top tandem is currently listed at No. 36 in the nation.
In the team rankings, Illinois retained its stronghold on the nation's top spot. Illinois is followed in the top five by Florida, Stanford, UCLA and Baylor, respectively. After winning the SEC Tournament on Sunday, Vanderbilt jumped up to the No. 6 spot. Ole Miss is listed at No. 8, giving the SEC three top-10 teams.
The last time Tennessee was ranked out of the top 50 was Dec. 1997, when it was listed at No. 59.
After becoming the only SEC team to drop out of the national top 50 this season, Tennessee waits to see if it will receive a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Selections are announced Wednesday, April 30, and if the Vols receive a bid they will likely travel to Duke (Durham, N.C.) or Vanderbilt (Nashville) for NCAA regionals May 9-11.
