ITA National Rankings
Samford Media Guide
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Just weeks after earning its best victory in school history, the Samford University men's tennis team again accomplished a program first Wednesday as the Bulldogs were ranked No. 64 in the nation by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
Samford's top doubles team comprised of
Garrison Laduca and
Zac Dunkle was also recognized as the No. 36-ranked tandem in the nation.
On Saturday, the Bulldogs' Laduca and Dunkle jumped onto the national scene as Samford's pairing knocked off Mississippi State's No. 13-ranked doubles squad comprised of Jordan Angus and Malte Strop, 8-6, in the No. 1 singles contest. So far this season, Samford's historic doubles tandem owns a perfect 2-0 record.
As a team,
Samford (4-4) has faced four nationally-ranked opponents this season in No. 6 Kentucky, No. 11 Mississippi State, No. 45 Alabama and No. 59 Georgia State. The Bulldogs' biggest victory of the season occurred Feb. 6, when they traveled to Tuscaloosa, Ala., and toppled the Alabama Crimson Tide, 4-3.
With Samford's win at Alabama, which is now ranked No. 31 in the nation, the Bulldogs ended a 31-match losing streak versus the Crimson Tide, dating all the way back to May 5, 1961, when the school was named Howard College. Therefore, it was the Bulldogs' first win over the Crimson Tide in nearly 52 years and Samford's first victory over a top-50 ranked opponent.
Samford's
Fares Kilani, a true freshman from Tunis, Tunisia, was recently ranked the SoCon Player of the Week on Tuesday after he earned a key three-set singles victory against No. 6-ranked Kentucky's Alejandro Gomez on court No. 3.
Kilani finished last week with a 2-1 record in singles play and was 1-1 in doubles competition in matches against Troy, No. 11 Mississippi State and No. 6 Kentucky.
The nationally-ranked Samford University men's tennis team will next be in action March 3 at 1 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs begin SoCon play at home against defending conference tournament champion, the College of Charleston Cougars, in a key early-league matchup to be held at the Samford Tennis Center. Admission is
FREE to all Samford home tennis matches.
ITA National Rankings
Samford Media Guide
