Rebel Netters No. 6 In Preseason National Rankings; Gard Remains Nation's Top-Ranked Player

Jan. 11, 2005

OXFORD, Miss. - For the 11th consecutive year, the Ole Miss men's tennis team will begin the year ranked among the nation's top 10, grabbing the No. 6 spot in the preseason Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national team rankings, released Tuesday. Senior All-American Catalin Gard remained the No. 1 ranked singles player in the nation after an outstanding fall.

"The team worked extremely hard in the fall, and we are excited about the spring season," head coach Billy Chadwick said. "We will be looking for leadership from Cat to help guide a young, talented team. The SEC is once again outstanding from top to bottom, so it will be a huge challenge for us to repeat as SEC Champions."

In 2004, the Rebels won the overall SEC Championship, as well as their third consecutive SEC West title, and finished the season ranked No. 5 in the country. It marked the 10th time in the last 11 years for the Rebels to finish among the nation's top 10.

Defending NCAA Champion Baylor claimed the top spot in the team rankings followed by UCLA, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Ole Miss, Stanford, USC, Duke and Virginia. The SEC, which placed all 12 teams in the NCAA Championships a year ago, led all conferences with nine teams ranked in the Top 25.

The Rebels return five of the top seven players from last year's SEC Championship squad. Gard, the 2004 SEC Player of the Year, captured the year's first major collegiate event, the ICY Hot/ITA All-American Championships, defeating the 2004 Pac-10 Player of the Year, Stanford's Sam Warburg, in the final. He is the fifth Rebel to hold the distinction of being the No. 1 ranked player in the nation. Gard will be competing this week at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic in California.

The rest of the Rebels will be competing in the SEC Indoor Championships this weekend in New Orleans, La.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

Related Videos