NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans men's tennis team will host Alcorn State on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the University Tennis Center in the squad's lone dual of the weekend.
UNO (5-5) enters the match against ASU (2-6) with an unblemished 3-0 mark at the UTC this season. All three of the Privateers' home victories have come against Southland Conference opposition, enabling UNO to sit atop the league's standings with a 3-0 record.
The Privateers return to the Lakefront seeking to reverse course after dropping 3 of 4 matches over the last two weeks. The most recent setback came at the hands of Troy in a 5-2 loss on Mar. 10.
Reigning 'Southland Player of the Week'
Vinay Kamineni and
Rui Silva are the only UNO players in head coach
Burzis Kanga's lineup entering play this weekend with a winning streak. Both players won their matches against Troy and Alabama State last weekend.
Overall, Silva with a 5-4 singles' record has the best mark on the Privateer roster.
Lovro Curcija and
Christoffer Appelgren are also sitting above .500 with records of 3-2 and 2-1, respectively.
ASU is the reigning champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and a 2012 NCAA tournament participant. The Privateers already own a pair of wins over SWAC foes this season, dispatching Prairie View A&M and Alabama State without dropping a singles' or doubles' match.
The Braves have struggled as of late, not winning since a 4-2 result over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Feb. 22.
Barring any changes, the Privateers' current homestand will conclude on Wednesday, Mar. 20 when Xavier (La.) visits the UTC for a 3 p.m. dual.
JACKSON STATE DUAL POSTPONED
As announced on Thursday, the originally scheduled UNO men's and women's tennis match against Jackson State set for today (Mar. 15) at 2 p.m. was postponed. JSU had travel issues in its return to the Gulf Coast after spending the last few days in Orlando, Fla. for a series of matches. The coaches from both institutions will convene in the next week to re-schedule.
