NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans men's tennis team (3-0) has had nearly two weeks to prepare for a two-match weekend, which starts on Friday when the Privateers host the Troy Trojans (1-9) at 2:30 p.m. The Privateers will then face Stetson (3-4) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Privateers last played on Feb. 13 and defeated Alcorn State 5-2 to remain unblemished on the season. New Orleans now owns victories over Alcorn, Jackson State, and Loyola. This weekend marks the end of a five-match home stand which started the spring for UNO.
The middle and back of the rotation for the Privateers has been consistent throughout the early portion of the spring.
Nicolas Kramer,
Gonzalo Garcia,
Christoffer Appelgren, and
Luis Albuquerque have combined for a 12-0 mark in singles while playing the 3 through 6 spots in the rotation. Garcia and Kramer have also combined for a 3-0 mark in doubles.
"It's a very good Troy team. They've played a very tough schedule and it's going to be a challenge for us," said Coach
Burzis Kanga. "However, our players should be ready and they have to put their game faces on."
New Orleans is looking for a better run at it against Troy whom they've lost to seven straight times dating back to 1999. In the last meeting between the two, the Trojans took a 4-0 decision on Mar. 27, 2015. Troy was nationally ranked (No. 57) at the time of the match.
Troy has endured a tough schedule that has featured nine ranked opponents. The Trojans have faced one top five team (Oklahoma) and three top 25 ranked opponents. Troy's lone win came against then 66
th-ranked UTSA. The Trojans have also had a considerable amount of time between matches with their last also coming on Feb. 13 when they lost to North Carolina State.
Kanga stated about the gap between matches, "It's just the nature of the beast and I did not want to have this much time off but from another perspective it gives the players a chance to heal and prepare. Now we start getting into the thick of it. I expect two tough matches this weekend and we have to be mentally and physically ready."
Stetson comes in with a fairly tough schedule on their plate as well. The Hatters have played two ranked opponents (Florida and South Alabama) and have lost to both. Their last match was a triumph by a 6-1 margin over Bethune-Cookman. Loic Blanco has four wins in six matches this spring, all of them coming at the #1 position.
