Men's Tennis Prepares to Host Auburn and Alabama
Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Men's Tennis
The seventh-ranked University of Florida men's tennis team (10-2, 2-0 SEC) continues its SEC slate this weekend, welcoming a pair of Western Division foes to Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex. The Gators will face Auburn on Friday at 3 p.m. and Alabama at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Florida comes into the match after dominating the opening two matches of its SEC schedule, blanking both Arkansas and LSU on the road last weekend. The Gators look to keep that solid play rolling on their home courts, where they have posted a 6-0 record this spring.
Florida has two players nationally ranked in singles, with Alexandre Lacroix (Paris, France) checking in at No. 6 and Antoine Benneteau (Boulogne-Billancourt, France) cracking the rankings at No. 121.
Lacroix has posted a 9-2 mark at the No. 1 singles position this spring and holds an overall 24-6 mark for 2009-10, including 14 wins over ranked opponents. Benneteau stands at 10-1 in dual match play and has won 11 of his last 12 matches overall. In addition, Nassim Slilam (Paris, France) holds a team-high nine-match winning streak, predominantly from the No. 6 singles position.
The Gators are receiving strong play in doubles, where they have won the point in 10 of 11 dual matches (doubles were not played Jan. 30 vs. Furman). UF has two ranked pairs, with Lacroix and Benneteau at No. 16 and Sekou Bangoura Jr. (Bradenton, Fla.) and Joey Burkhardt (St. Augustine, Fla.) at No. 43.
The Gators have exhibited tremendous depth this spring, with a combined 21-2 record at the fifth and sixth singles positions. Bangoura has made a team-high seven appearances at No. 5, compiling a 6-1 record there. Slilam leads the Gators with nine appearances at No. 6, where he holds an 8-1 mark.
In a display of the fresh talent on this year's Gator squad, both Bangoura and Bob Van Overbeek (Boca Raton, Fla.) have received SEC Freshman of the Week honors at various points this spring.
Admission to the matches is free. Check www.GatorZone.com for updates and results.
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