March 4, 2010
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After dispatching of Furman and Middle Tennessee State last week to close non-conference play with an 8-3 record, Vanderbilt’s men’s tennis team will begin SEC play this weekend when the Commodores host No. 15 Ole Miss and No. 40 Mississippi State at the Currey Tennis Center.
The Commodores will put their 6-0 home record on the line Friday when they host the Rebels (8-1) at 2 p.m. Vanderbilt will conclude the weekend by hosting Mississippi State, 6-3, at 1 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free to both matches and live stats will be available by clicking
Temperatures are predicted to be in the 50s on Friday and the 60s on Sunday, which means Vanderbilt’s first home outdoor matches of the season could take place this weekend. Vanderbilt last played a match outdoors at the ITA Kick-off Weekend in Los Angeles, where the Commodores lost to then-No. 1 USC before downing then-No. 70 Radford.
Vanderbilt has outscored its opponents 38-4 at home this season and is 8-0 when it wins the doubles point and 0-3 when it does not.
The Commodores enter league play in a much different situation this year as opposed to 2009 when Vanderbilt began SEC play riding a four-match losing skid. On Friday against Ole Miss, the Commodores will be looking to win their SEC opener for the first time since the 2003-04 season when Vanderbilt swept Florida and South Carolina in the first week of league play.
Vanderbilt has three players with at least eight wins in dual play. Junior Alex Zotov paces the team with a 10-0 record, while Bryant Salcedo has a 9-2 mark and Adam Baker is 8-1. Freshman Ryan Lipman is ranked No. 48 nationally and is 6-4 in the No. 1 position this spring. Zotov leads the team in overall wins (19), followed by Lipman’s 16.
Vanderbilt has been very strong from positions 3-6 in dual play, where the Commodores are 35-7 overall.
Ole Miss has won four straight matches after losing 4-3 to Georgia at the ITA National Indoor Championships. Ole Miss has three players ranked in singles, led by No. 53 Tucker Vorster. Also ranked are No. 81 Marcel Thiemann and No. 103 Adrian Forberg Skogeng. Ole Miss has won eight straight SEC West titles and is the defending SEC Champions. The Commodores last defeated Ole Miss in 2003.
Mississippi State has won four straight matches and will play at Kentucky on Friday before traveling to Nashville. Vanderbilt has won two straight against Mississippi State and won every home match against MSU since 2002. Mississippi State has two players ranked in singles. Louis Cant, 8-0, is ranked No. 100 and George Coupland is ranked 101st.