Alabama
#23 Tulane
No. 42 Alabama Men’s Tennis Prepares for First Round NCAA Tournament Matchup with No. 23 Tulane
5/10/2018 8:25:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The No. 3-seeded Crimson Tide will take on the No. 2-seeded Green Wave in the Tallahassee Regional on Friday
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The No. 42 Alabama men's tennis team is set to take on No. 23 Tulane in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday at 1 p.m. CT in the Tallahassee Regional at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center on the campus of Florida State University. The winner will take on either No. 12 Florida State or Alabama State Saturday at 3 p.m. CT.
Alabama is making its 18th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its first since 2013 when the Crimson Tide fell to San Diego, 4-3, in the first round of the Los Angeles Regional. The last time UA advanced past the first round was in 2009 when Alabama hosted a regional and defeated Furman, 4-0, in Tuscaloosa.
The Tide comes into the tournament after advancing to the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. Alabama defeated Auburn, 4-0, in the first round, before pulling off a 4-1 upset over No. 25 Kentucky. UA then dropped a hard-fought match against No. 19 Tennessee, 4-3, in the quarterfinals marking the sixth time this season the Tide has fallen by a 4-3 decision.
Junior Mazen Osama has been unstoppable in singles play, as the No. 10 player in the country has won four-straight matches, all against nationally-ranked foes. Osama earned All-America honors, along with being named First Team All-SEC last week. Sophomore Edson Ortiz also earned SEC honors after being voted to the All-SEC Second Team with a 16-6 mark during the spring season. Sophomore Alexey Nesterov leads the squad in wins at 18-7.
In doubles, Osama and Ortiz are the No. 26 pairing in the nation. The duo is 16-7, which is tops on the team, while playing in the No. 1 spot.
The team arrived in Tallahassee Monday to begin preparations against a red-hot Tulane squad that is coming off its first conference championship since 2005 and its first American Athletic Conference title since joining the league in 2014-15. The Green Wave bested South Florida in the conference final, 4-3, to earn its third-consecutive NCAA tournament bid. Tulane senior Constantin Schmitz was named the AAC tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Schmitz ranks as the No. 15 singles player in the country, while he and partner Ewan Moore are the No. 34 doubles pair. As a team, Tulane has won 12 of its last 13 matches, including seven-straight. In the NCAA tournament, the Green Wave has won its last five first-round matchups.
MATCH INFORMATION
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Date: Friday, May 11
Time: 1 p.m. CT
Teams: No. 42 Alabama (18-12) vs. No. 23 Tulane (18-6)
Location: Scott Speicher Tennis Center (Tallahassee, Fla.)
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