May 8, 2003
ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech men’s tennis team will begin its third-straight NCAA Championship appearance on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. EST, by facing 23rd-ranked Auburn in the first round of the NCAA Regional at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center in Oxford, Miss. The University of Mississippi is hosting the event.
The Yellow Jackets’ (12-9) 2003 appearance will be the seventh in the history of the program, as head coach Kenny Thorne has now led Tech to the NCAAs in four of his five seasons at the helm. Georgia Tech has nearly broken even in its six previous appearances, holding a 5-7 record in those matches. The Yellow Jackets’ top performance in the tourney came in 1994, when Tech reached the round of 16 in Notre Dame, Ind., before falling to third-ranked TCU. Last year, the Jackets fell to 19th-ranked South Carolina in the first round in Athens, Ga. Tech is 24-9 against Auburn (15-9) in its history, with the two teams last meeting in 1998, when the Tigers won by a 6-1 score.
All-ACC performers Roger Anderson and Scott Schnugg will lead Tech as it enters the 2003 NCAA Championship. Anderson, a senior from Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, earned All-ACC honors for the third-straight year in 2003, ranking second on the team with a 23-9 singles record on the year, playing solely in the No. 1 position in the singles lineup. He was also picked to compete in the NCAA singles championship for the second-straight year. Schnugg, a junior from Medford, Ore., leads the team in overall singles wins with a 26-13 record. He and Anderson form the Yellow Jackets’ top doubles team, as the duo holds a 12-2 dual-match record and a 13-3 overall mark. They are currently ranked 10th in the nation in the latest ITA rankings and were selected to compete in the NCAA doubles championship.
The winner of the match between Georgia Tech and Auburn will advance to face the winner of eighth-ranked and top-seeded Ole Miss (18-4) and fourth-seeded Southern Conference Champion College of Charleston (18-3) in the second round. The winner of that match will advance to the round of 16 at the Dan Magill Tennis Center at the University of Georgia in Athens, Ga. A recap of the Jackets’ match can be found at www.ramblinwreck.com, while the full draw for the tournament is available at www.ncaachampionships.com.
-GT-
