The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebel Netters Head To SEC Tournament Seeking More Hardware
4/20/2005 | Men's Tennis
April 20, 2005
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss men's tennis team, ranked No. 3 nationally, heads to Athens, Ga., this weekend for the SEC Tournament, seeking some more hardware. The Rebels, the tournament's top seed, will face the No. 8 seed LSU Friday at 9 a.m. ET at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
LSU defeated Auburn 4-1 in the first round Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals.
"We accomplished two of our goals in winning the SEC West and the overall Championship," head coach Billy Chadwick said. "The SEC tournament is the second toughest tournament next to the NCAA Championships. We are focusing on one match at a time. In this league you have to be ready for every match, because all the teams are very good."
Ole Miss won the overall SEC Championship for the second year in a row as well as their fourth consecutive SEC Western Division title. For the 12th consecutive year, the Rebels ended the SEC in the top third. That's an impressive feat when you consider that there are eight league teams currently ranked in the top 25 and three in the top 10.
With his fourth SEC Championship this season, Rebel head coach Billy Chadwick joins legendary coaches Tom Swayze and John Vaught as the only coaches in the history of Ole Miss to win four or more SEC titles. Swayze won four SEC titles in 1959, 1960, 1964 and 1969. Vaught won six conference titles in 1947, 1954, 1955, 1960, 1962 and 1963.
With their win over Mississippi State, the Rebels also secured the program's seventh 20-win campaign.
The Rebels are led by senior Catalin Gard, who picked up his third All-SEC honor on Tuesday, after finishing 9-2 in the league at No. 1 singles. Freshman Erling Tveit, who also earned All-SEC honors, owns a 9-2 record at No. 3 singles. Junior Juan Pablo Di Cesare heads into the tournament with only one loss in dual matches at 18-1.
The Rebels have reached the semifinals of the SEC Tournament nine times, and the final twice, including last year. Ole Miss won the tournament title in 1997, defeating Georgia 4-2. Georgia won last year's title, holding off the Rebels 4-3 in the final.
LSU earned the No. 8 seed in the tournament after finishing with a 5-6 league record, 19-7 overall. The Tigers, ranked No. 12 nationally, have now won six in a row. They are led by All-SEC player Ken Skupski, who is 8-6 at No. 1 singles and 5-3 at No. 2 singles.
Ole Miss has defeated LSU four consecutive times, most recently a 4-3 come-from-behind win in Oxford on April 1.
To follow Ole Miss throughout the SEC Tournament, go to www.olemisssports.com and click on the SEC Men's Tennis Championship logo.
