University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols Host Two Top-15 Teams This Weekend
March 12, 2009 | Men's Tennis
March 12, 2009
The sixth-ranked Tennessee men's tennis team hosts 15th-ranked South Carolina and eighth-ranked Florida this weekend as the Vols try to get a leg up on the Southeastern East Division. The match against South Carolina is scheduled to begin Friday at 1 p.m. The Florida match is Sunday at 1 p.m.
"We're excited to be at home and get to play two great teams," head coach Sam Winterbotham said. "We've prepared well all week and we're looking forward to a very good challenge. South Carolina has only lost once this spring, and obviously Florida is a traditional power in the SEC. We'll need to be at our best this weekend."
The Vols (8-3, 1-1 SEC) opened SEC play last weekend by splitting its trip to Mississippi. The Vols defeated Mississippi State on Friday but fell to third-ranked Ole Miss on Sunday. Sophomore Matteo Fago was UT's most consistent performer on opening weekend, winning both of his singles matches. The Italy native is now 9-0 this season in dual-match play and is 13-0 in regular season SEC dual-matches.
South Carolina (12-1, 2-0 SEC) is on a nine-match win streak and is 2-0 in conference play for the first time since the 2005 season. Last weekend, the Gamecocks defeated Vanderbilt and 11th-ranked Kentucky at home. Diego Cubas and Pedro Campos went undefeated at the No. 1 and 2 singles positions, respectively, this past weekend.
Florida (11-3, 2-0 SEC) plays at fourth-ranked Georgia on Friday before heading to play the Vols on Sunday. UF's Alex Lacroix was named SEC Player of the Week after going undefeated in singles and doubles. The 34th-ranked Gator is 13-2 in dual-match singles play and is 12-1 with partner Carlos Cueto in doubles. Cueto and Lacroix are currently on a nine-match win streak and are ranked 80th in the doubles poll. Cueto (19th) and Hochwalt (88) are the other Gators ranked in the singles poll. Florida has four different doubles duos ranked by the ITA.
Both matches are free to the public. Live scoring for those that cannot attend can be found at UTsports.com.
Players Mentioned
