Friday, 10/30/2009

Crimson Tide to host 15 teams this weekend in Tuscaloosa

 

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama men’s tennis team returns home to host the annual Crimson Tide Fall Championships this weekend beginning on Friday, October 30. The tournament will wrap up on Sunday, Nov. 1 with all action taking place at the University of Alabama Tennis Stadium.

 

“Our team is looking forward to hosting and participating in our annual fall event,” said head coach Billy Pate. “We always try and schedule this tournament later in the fall since many teams are looking for quality competition before this season concludes in early November.”

 

Alabama is coming off a very successful showing at the Wilson/ITA Southern Regional Championships last weekend in New Orleans. The Tide had two doubles pairs reach the Round of 16, with the tandem of senior Houssam Yassine and junior Trey Walston making a run to the championship match. In singles, senior Saketh Myneni and sophomore Ricky Doverspike both advanced to the Round of 16.

 

Sixteen teams will be competing this weekend, including four SEC teams in Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt. In-state foes Jacksonville State and UAB will also be making their way to Tuscaloosa this weekend. Gardner Webb, Georgia Southern, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State, Radford, Southern Mississippi, Tennessee Tech, Tulane, and UT-Chattanooga round out the field.

 

“We're a little banged up right now with injuries, but we need to get the healthy guys out there playing as many matches as possible,” added Pate. “We typically have fared well in our home events and hope we can continue that trend. It's a very balanced field with strong players throughout the draws. The Bryant Draw will be the top draw for singles and will feature many No. 1 players from universities across the Southeast."

 

Matches are slated to begin at 9:00 a.m. (CST) each day. Friday’s play will consist of two singles and one doubles match, while one singles and two doubles matches will be played on Saturday. The tournament finishes Sunday with two rounds of doubles and one round of singles. The format of play may change if weather intervenes.

 

--UA--