JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida men's tennis prepares for its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance when it faces off with ninth-ranked Florida on Saturday at noon at the Alfred A. Ring Complex. With a victory, UNF would face the winner of USF and St. John's (NY).
"The most excited thing about playing Florida is that we are only an hour and a half down the road," said head coach
Mark Finnegan. "We have had tremendous outreach from the alumni and supporters and we know that we are going to have a great crowd come out and support us. The most important thing is that we have had some great players and teams that have come through this program and unfortunately just could not get to the tournament. This team was able to stay healthy at the right time and create history. We can't wait to share more memories and moments with everyone down in Gainesville."
UNF, who wont the 2016 Atlantic Sun Tournament, is making its first appearance and faces 25-year veteran Florida as the Gators have made the tournament every year since 1991. The Ospreys finished as the runner-up in the conference tournament for four straight years before clinching their first title this season against USC Upstate.
Yannick Zuern and
Jack Findel-Hawkins pace the team with a top 25 ranking in ITA Doubles with an 11-5 record. The pair made it to the Round of 16 of the ITA All-American Championship in the fall and went to the finals of the USTA/ITA Regionals where they fell to the No. 1 doubles team from Florida. In singles play, Findel-Hawkins was tabbed the Atlantic Sun Player of the Year after posting a 4-1 mark and earning a No. 109 ranking in singles play. He owns two victories against nationally-ranked opponents and is 8-5 overall. Zuern is back from injury and currently on a three-match winning streak including grabbing a point in the A-Sun championship match at the No. 3 spot. Overall, the junior has a team-high 18 total singles wins.
At the No. 2 spot, sophomore
Lasse Muscheites has posted an impressive 10-0 mark, while boasting a team-best 14-7 dual record. In doubles play, Muscheites and
Zach Goldberg have a 10-3 mark with five wins coming at both the No. 1 and No. 2 positions. The pair helped clinch the doubles point against USC Upstate in the Atlantic Sun Championship match. In
Florida is led by the doubles team of Diego Hidalgo and Gordon Watson with a 13-5 mark on the season and ranked first in the country. Hidalgo is also ranked No. 10 in the country in singles with a 17-5 dual match record. UF owns a 3-0 advantage against the Ospreys and won 5-2 when the teams last met in 2014.
Single day tickets for Friday and Saturday are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for senior citizens, college students and children under 17.
