ATLANTA--The No. 62-ranked Georgia
State men's tennis team prepares for its first-ever trip to the ITA Kick-Off
Weekend beginning on Friday with a 2 p.m. match against No. 55-ranked Arkansas
in Charlottesville, Va.
The
Panthers (2-0) qualified for the tournament after finishing last season ranked
in the Top 75 of the ITA Men's National Team rankings. The top 15 schools are
designated as host sites by the International Tennis Association and a draft
determines the locations for the rest of the top 60 teams in the rankings.
Georgia State finished last season ranked No. 60 and elected to compete at the
University of Virginia in June.
In
their first season under head coach Joerg Barthel, the Panthers have a chance
to notch a first-ever victory at the prestigious annual event.
"This
is huge for us and it is a huge success for the veterans who achieved this last
year," Barthel said, "This an annual tournament that each year pits the best
teams in the country against each other, and that is an elite level we want to
get to. We want to qualify for this tournament on a yearly basis."
GSU
squares off against No. 55-ranked Arkansas (2-0) on Friday at the Boar's Head
Sports Club, just a short drive from the main campus of the University of
Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. The Razorbacks enter the event after sweeping
a doubleheader against Nebraska-Omaha and South Dakota State on Sunday in
Omaha, Neb. Leading Arkansas is senior Gregoire Lehmann at the No. 1 singles
position and sophomore Victor Hoang at t he No. 2 position.
"Any
team out of the SEC is tough and they're a very tough team," Barthel said of
Arkansas, "They are well coached and I know they always play strong doubles
which will be very important in this match."
Senior
Victor Valente notched a 6-0, 6-2, victory over Arkansas redshirt freshman
Christian Lee from the Georgia Southern Championships last October. Lee played
in the No. 4 singles position in the Razorbacks' first two matches. This
weekend will mark GSU's eighth and ninth match vs. a nationally-ranked opponent
since just the start of last season.
Live
stats will be provided courtesy of virginiasports.com for Friday's and Saturday's
matches. Visit the men's tennis page on GeorgiaStateSports.com for a full recap
of results from each day at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend. Fans can follow the
Georgia State men's tennis team on Twitter at "@GSUMTennis" to receive live
updates of results from Charlottesville.
www.GeorgiaStateSports.com
