Live Scoring JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – No. 67 University of North Florida men's tennis finishes the regular season with a nationally-ranked opponent, facing No. 73 Troy on Thursday at 1 p.m., at the UNF Tennis Complex.
"Troy has turned their program around very quickly," said head coach
Mark Finnegan. "They are well-coached and we are expecting a huge battle. Heart and being competitors is what we have been focusing on all week. I'm looking forward to seeing how the guys play tomorrow."
Thursday will also be Senior Day with the Ospreys honoring
Norbert Nemcsek. A four-year Osprey, Nemcsek enters Thursday match with an all-time 63-51 singles record and 88-38 in doubles matches. In dual match play, he has compiled a 46-37 mark in singles and 59-23 in doubles.
UNF attempts to go for a perfect season on its home courts on Thursday as the Ospreys enter the match with a 9-0 record at the UNF Tennis Complex this season. It will also be the fourth time in which UNF hosts a nationally-ranked team.
UNF aims to bounce back from a 7-0 loss at Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday evening that concluded the Ospreys' Atlantic Sun schedule. As a result, the Ospreys clinched the No. 2 seed in next week's Atlantic Sun Tournament. However, despite the loss to Florida Gulf Coast, UNF moved up two spots in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings that came out on Tuesday.
Troy enters Thursday with a 21-6 overall record. The Trojans have appeared in the ITA's Team Rankings since the beginning of March and ranked as high as No. 57. However, after coming in at No. 65 last week, Troy slipped to No. 73 on Tuesday. The Trojans had a doubleheader with UCF and Rollins last Friday, beating Division II's Rollins 4-1, but falling 4-1 to UCF. Troy has played strong on the singles courts, especially at No. 2 singles when the team has a 20-6 mark. Hassan Ndayishimye has a majority of those No. 2 singles wins, tallying a 12-3 record on that court. Meanwhile, Giovani Samaha brings a nine-match winning streak into Thursday's match.
Admission is free to all UNF home tennis matches.
