Men Face Hokies In NCAA Tourney

May 9, 2000

OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss men's tennis team is among the field of 64 teams set to begin competing in the 2000 NCAA Championships this weekend. The first and second rounds are being held at 16 sites around the country with four teams in each regional. The 16 winners of each regional will advance to the final 16 in Athens, Ga., May 20-23.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS - FIRST & SECOND ROUNDS
May 13-14, 2000
Blacksburg, Virginia
#14 Ole Miss vs. #49-64 Virginia Tech
Saturday, 2:00 PM, EST.

SEVENTH CONSECUTIVE NCAA APPEARANCE:
Ole Miss is making its seventh consecutive appearance in the NCAA Team Championships and ninth overall. The Rebels have participated in the NCAA Championships every year since 1994 and also in 1989 and 1992.

REBELS SEEDED NO. 14:
The Rebels are seeded No. 14 overall in the NCAA Championship bracket and are the top seed in their regional which also includes host Virginia Tech, VCU and Virginia.

REBELS AT NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Ole Miss has advanced to the quarterfinals five years in a row including an appearance in the championship match in 1995, and two final four appearances in 1997 and 1999.

A YEAR AGO AT NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Last year was another outstanding year for the Rebels as they advanced to the Final Four for the third time. Ole Miss hosted one of the four-team regionals and defeated Navy and South Alabama to reach the round of 16. Once there, the Rebels beat Mississippi State 4-2 and Illinois 4-3, before losing to eventual national champion Georgia in the semifinals.

OLE MISS TO MEET VIRGINIA TECH:
Ole Miss will meet Virginia Tech in the first round of the NCAA Championships Saturday at 2:00 p.m., Eastern at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center. VCU will play Virginia at 10:00 a.m. in the first match. The championship match will be played on Sunday at noon.

THE OPPONENT:
Ole Miss faces host Virginia Tech in the first round of the NCAA Championships. The Hokies enter the championships with a 15-13 overall record and are ranked t67th in the nation. They are led by sophomore Davor Dupljak, who holds a 21-16 overall record, 10-15 at No. 1 singles. Virginia Tech played one other SEC school during the year, losing to Tennessee 7-0.

THE WINNER GETS:
The winner of this match will meet the winner between VCU and Virginia. VCU comes into the regional sporting a 22-4 overall record and a No. 19 national ranking. The Rams are led by one of the nation's top players, Daniel Andersson, who is ranked No. 2 with a 42-4 overall record, 15-3 at No. 1 singles. VCU has played two other SEC schools defeating Tennessee 4-1 and Alabama 4-1. Virginia enters the weekend with a 16-9 overall record and a No. 38 national ranking. The Cavaliers are led by No. 4 ranked Brian Vahaly, who boast a 32-4 overall record, 22-1 at No. 1 singles.

REBELS MAKE NCAA INDIVIDUAL FIELD:
Junior James Shortall, senior Vikrant Chadha and freshman Alexander Hartman qualified for the NCAA individual championships, which take place following the team competition in Athens, Ga. Shortall and Chadha made the 64-team doubles draw and Hartman qualified in singles. Shortall is making his second appearance, while Chadha will be going for the first time. Hartman is one of only three freshmen to qaulify for the NCAA Singles Championships. This marks the seventh year in a row that the Rebels have had a representative in the NCAA individual championships and the 12th overall.

LAST ACTION:
The Rebels advanced to the semifinals at the SEC Tournament in their last action. They won the doubles point and Nos. 3, 4, and 6 singles to defeat Mississippi State 4-3 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, the Rebels lost a hard-fought 4-3 battle to Florida. Florida won the doubles point and then took the top two positions and the fifth spot for the win.

ALL-SEC HONOREES:
Junior James Shortall and freshmen Alexander Hartman were named to the All-SEC second team in singles. This is the second time for Shortall to be named All-SEC as he also earned all-conference honors last year in singles and doubles. Hartman earned the honor in his first year. The Rebels have had a total of 29 athletes named All-SEC since 1977. This marks the seventh consecutive year that Ole Miss has had a player on the first team. The Rebels have had an All-SEC honoree 11of the last 12 years.

TOP FOUR AGAIN:
Ole Miss has finished in the top four of the SEC seven consecutive years dating back to 1994. That's an impressive statistic when you look at the number of teams consistently ranked among the nation's Top 25 each year.

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST:
The Rebels are currently ranked No. 13 in the latest WingspanBank.com Collegiate Rankings. In singles, freshman Alexander Hartman is ranked No. 26. James Shortall is ranked No. 59 and Anders Stenman is ranked No. 86. In doubles, Shortall and Vikrant Chadha are ranked No. 18.

DOUBLE TROUBLE:
The doubles point often plays a huge role in whether a team wins or loses a match. The Rebels have won the doubles point in 16 of their 23 matches and are undefeated when they do so. However, when they lose the doubles point, the Rebels are 2-5.

EXPERIENCED LINEUP GETS IT DONE:
Ole Miss returned five players from last year's NCAA Final Four lineup this year and added one of the nation's top freshman to make up a balanced lineup from top to bottom. With only one senior on the squad, the Rebels have placed themselves in familiar territory, vying for SEC Championships and NCAA titles.

GUARANTEED TO WIN:
Rebel sophomore Kristofer Stahlberg is almost a sure win when he steps on the court. Stahlberg owns a 26-9 overall record this year, and is 14-3 at No. 4 singles. He has won 14 of his last 15 matches. Combined over the last two years, Stahlberg has posted a 45-12 record. He clinched the win against Mississippi State in the regular season.

FRESHMAN SENSATION:
Freshman Alexander Hartman has been sensational in his first campaign as a Rebel, posting a 31-16 record. He is currently the second-highest ranked freshman in the country and is a definite player to watch in the future. He qualified for the NCAA Singles Championships in his first campaign and is one of only three freshman to make the 64-player field.

IT MUST BE TOURNAMENT TIME:
Senior Vikrant Chadha's favorite time of the year is here. Chadha loves postseason play and he always steps up. He has a 7-2 record in NCAA Championship play and has clinched several wins for the Rebels. Chadha won both his matches in the SEC Tournament.

20 WIN SEASONS:
The Rebels are looking for their fifth 20-win season in the program's history and need two more wins to reach that plateau.

LOOKING FOR ANOTHER TOP 10 FINISH:
Ole Miss is bidding to earn its seventh consecutive top 10 finish. The Rebels have been ranked among the nation's top 10 six straight years dating back to 1994 and among the top five five of the last six years.

CHADWICK IN ELITE COMPANY:
Head Coach Billy Chadwick is among elite company in the collegiate coaching ranks. He is one of only six active Division I coaches to have a led a team to the NCAA Championship Finals.

20 WIN CLUB:
With two more victories, Martin Selin can become the fifth Rebel to notch 20 wins for the season. Freshman Alexander Hartman leads the team with 31 wins, sophomore Kristofer Stahlberg has 26, senior Vikrant Chadha has 21 and junior Anders Stenman has 20.

STREAKS:
Senior Vikrant Chadha has won seven of his last eight matches. Sophomore Kristofer Stahlberg has won five in a row and 14 of his last 15 matches. Junior Anders Stenman has won seven in a row and nine of his last 10 matches.

MILESTONES:
Junior James Shortall needs four more wins to reach 70 for his career. Senior Vikrant Chadha defeated Florida's Nathan Overholser to win his 80th career singles match and he needs one more doubles victory to reach 60 for his career. Both sophomores Martin Selin and Kristofer Stahlberg are approaching 50 wins in their careers. Selin needs three more and Stahlberg needs five.

ACADEMIC ALL-SEC:
David Blackburn, Martin Selin, James Shortall and Kristofer Stahlberg were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Blackburn, a junior from Vicksburg, Miss., is a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll and boasts a 3.96 grade point average in Accounting. He has been on the Chancellor's Honor Roll every semester and was elected Colonel Reb this past fall. Shortall, a junior from Feilding, New Zealand, holds a 3.22 in Mechanical Engineering and is making his second appearance on the honor roll. A sophomore from Helsingborg, Sweden, Selin owns a 3.03 GPA in Business. Stahlberg, a sophomore from Kolmarden, Sweden, is one of six student-athletes on the list with a perfect 4.0 GPA. ?We are extremely proud of our accomplishments on the court and in the classroom,? head coach Billy Chadwick said. ?These young men epitomize the meaning of the word student-athlete.?

OLE MISS' NCAA TOURNAMENT RESULTS:

1989: Athens, Georgia
1st round Miami 5, Ole Miss 1

1992: Athens, Georgia
1st round Ole Miss 5, Clemson 3
Sweet Sixteen UCLA 6, Ole Miss 0

1994: South Bend, Indiana
Region III Ole Miss 4, S. Alabama 0
Region III Ole Miss 4, Miami 2
Sweet Sixteen Texas 4, Ole Miss 2

1995: Athens, Georgia
Region IV Ole Miss 4, Michigan 1
Region IV Ole Miss 4, Notre Dame 0
Sweet Sixteen Ole Miss 4, Southern Cal 3
Quarterfinals Ole Miss 4, Pepperdine 2
Semifinals Ole Miss 4, Georgia 3
Finals Stanford 4, Ole Miss 0

1996: Athens, Georgia
Sweet Sixteen Ole Miss 4, Minnesota 0
Quarterfinals TCU 4, Ole Miss 1

1997: Los Angeles, California
Sweet Sixteen Ole Miss 4, UCSB 0
Quarterfinals Ole Miss 4, Boise State 3
Semifinals Stanford 4, Ole Miss 2

1998: Athens, Georgia
Sweet Sixteen Ole Miss 4, California 1
Quarterfinals LSU 4, Ole Miss 0

1999: Athens, Georgia
First round Ole Miss 4, Navy 0
Second round Ole Miss 4, S. Alabama 0
Sweet Sixteen Ole Miss 4, Mississippi St. 2
Quarterfinals Ole Miss 4, Illinois 3
Semifinals Georgia 4, Ole Miss 1

Miscellaneous Win-Loss Records:

All Matches 18-5
Home Matches 10-1
Away Matches 5-1
Neutral Site Matches 3-3
Southeastern Conference Matches 9-2
SEC Home Matches 5-1
SEC Road Matches 4-1
SEC Neutral Site Matches 1-1
vs. Ranked Opponents 9-5
vs. Top 25 Opponents 5-5
vs. Top 10 Opponents 1-5
January 0-0
February 4-2
March 8-2
April 6-1
May 0-0
Sundays 3-1
Mondays 0-0
Tuesdays 4-0
Wednesdays 0-1
Thursdays 4-0
Fridays 4-1
Saturdays 2-2
Indoors 7-3
Outdoors 9-2
Record When Ole Miss Wins:
6 singles matches 2-0
5 singles matches 6-0
4 singles matches 6-0
3 singles matches 4-3
2 singles matches 0-1
1 singles matches 0-1
0 singles matches 0-0
Doubles Point 16-0
Loses doubles point 2-5

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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