March 29, 2018
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Auburn (10-12, 0-6 SEC) is on the road this weekend for a pair of SEC men's tennis matches.
Friday, the Tigers visit No. 19 Tennessee (16-5, 5-2 SEC) for a 5 p.m. CT match at the Barksdale Tennis Stadium in Knoxville.
Sunday, Auburn goes to No. 20 Georgia (9-7, 2-5 SEC) for a noon CT match at the Magill Tennis Complex in Athens.
"I feel the last two weeks of practice have been at a different level, in the energy and attention to detail from our guys," Auburn coach Bobby Reynolds said. "We have two great opportunities ahead of us this week against very good teams. Our team understands the importance of every match from now until the end of April and we are looking forward to those challenges."
In the latest Oracle/ITA national rankings, Auburn freshman Matteo De Vincentis is ranked No 109 in singles. Tennessee is ranked No. 19 as a team; the Volunteers' doubles team of Luis Valero and Preston Touliatos is ranked No. 15 and Timo Stodder is ranked No. 16 in singles.
No. 20 Georgia has three ranked doubles combinations: Jan Zielinski and Robert Loeb (10th), Wayne Montgomery and Walker Duncan (28th) and Zielinski and Duncan (24th). Five Bulldogs are nationally ranked in singles: Montgomery (15), Zielinski (21), Duncan (31), Emil Reinberg (55) and Nathan Ponwith (97).
The Tigers close out the home season Friday, April 6, vs. #40 Ole Miss and Sunday, April 8, vs. #43 Arkansas and Alabama A&M. All Auburn home matches are held at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (771 Yarbrough Farms Blvd., Auburn), and admission is free.