The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Travel to Face Arkansas
6/21/1999 | Men's Tennis
March 4, 1999
OXFORD, Miss. - The No. 4 nationally-ranked Ole Miss men's tennis team begins its quest for a third SEC Championship this Saturday at 39th-ranked Arkansas. The match begins at 1:00 p.m., at the Arkansas Outdoor Tennis Complex.
The Rebels (7-2) are coming off a 7-0 shutout over Samford on Tuesday. Their only losses are to Mississippi State and Illinois, both ranked in the top 10. The Rebels are led by James Shortall, who is 6-3 at the No. 1 spot. Freshman Kristofer Stahlberg is undefeated in eight dual matches.
Arkansas moved to 7-2 overall with a 7-0 sweep of Northeastern (Okla.) State on Tuesday. The Hogs are 1-1 in the SEC with a 4-3 win over Vanderbilt and a 4-1 loss to Tennessee. Arkansas is led by Sophomore Oskar Johansson, who is currently ranked No. 39 in the nation with a 8-1 record at the No. 1 position.
"Arkansas has a good team and life on the road in the SEC is tough," head coach Billy Chadwick said. "Our guys should expect a tough match, but we'll be ready. We are looking forward to starting the SEC season and beginning our quest for another conference title."
Ole Miss leads the overall series 8-3 including a 6-1 win during the 1998 season. The Hogs took the doubles point in that match, but the Rebels strong singles lineup swept the Razorbacks in straight sets in four of the six matches to take the win.
The Arkansas match begins a four-match road swing for Ole Miss that includes stops at Auburn (March 9), Alabama (March 11) and LSU (March 16) before returning home to host Florida on March 19.
