Wednesday, April 26, 2006
BLUE HOSE MEN’S & WOMEN’S TENNIS
RETURNING TO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
PC women’s team headed to Boca Raton, Fla. & men’s team
headed to Miami, Fla.
CLINTON, S.C. — The Presbyterian College men’s and women’s tennis teams received bids to the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Tournaments announced today by the NCAA Championships committee. Both teams will travel to the state of Florida next weekend, May 4-6, to participate in postseason play.
The No. 23-ranked Lady Blue Hose women’s team (18-3), under the direction of 2006 South Atlantic Conference (SAC) Coach of the Year Bobby McKee, enter the tournament after sweeping the 2006 SAC regular season and Food Lion Tournament titles and received an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. PC returns to postseason for the 11th consecutive year, the longest active postseason streak in SAC history.
PC will play host No. 5 Lynn University (19-1) in the first round. The Lady Blue Hose and Fighting Knights will meet for the first time in postseason. In the other first round match, No. 9 Nova Southeastern University (16-7) will play No. 20 Florida Gulf Coast University (12-5). The winners of the first round matches will meet in the region championship match.
The No. 25 Blue Hose men’s team (14-6), under the direction of 2006 SAC Coach of the Year head coach Patric Hynes, enter the tournament after sweeping the 2006 SAC regular season and Food Lion Tournament titles and received an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. PC returns to the NCAA postseason for the ninth time in the last 10 years. The men’s team will return to Miami, Fla., where they reached the regional championship match in 2004.
The PC men’s team will play No. 18 Eckerd College (19-4) in the first round. The Blue Hose and Tritons will meet for the first time in regional competition. These two teams met this season back on March 16 with the Tritons prevailing at home 7-2. In the other first round match, host No. 6 Barry University (17-6) plays Carson-Newman College (14-5). The winners of the first round matches will meet in the region championship match.
The 16 first- and second-round tournaments will be conducted May 4-6, with the winner of each first- and second-round tournament advancing to the finals in Kansas City, Missouri, with the Kansas City Sports Commission and Rockhurst University serving as co-hosts, May 10-13.
The championships consist of a 16-team single elimination tournament. Each of the following eight regions will conduct two first- and second-round tournaments: East, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, South, Great Lakes, Central, North Central and West. Sixteen conferences receive automatic qualification into the 2006 men’s championships, while 20 conferences received automatic qualification into the 2006 women’s championship.