Friday, May 10
Starkville, Miss.
11 a.m. (Indoors)
Samford University
vs
#27 Harvard (NCAA Tournament)
The 2013 SoCon champion Samford Bulldogs will face No. 21-ranked Harvard in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament Friday.
'Dogs To Face #21 Harvard In NCAA Tournament Friday
5.9.13 | Men's Tennis
Samford is in the midst of a four-match winning streak
Live Results
Samford Match Notes
Samford Media Guide
NCAA Tournament Bracket
NCAA Regional Headquarters
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Samford University men's tennis team will begin play in the 2013 NCAA Tournament Friday at 10 a.m. (CDT) as the 75th-ranked Bulldogs are slated to square off against the No. 21-ranked Harvard Crimson in the opening-round match to be held at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on the campus of Mississippi State University.
Following Friday's first-round contest, the homestanding Mississippi State Bulldogs will face Austin Peay at 1 p.m. Mississippi State enters the NCAA Tournament as the 12th-ranked team in the nation.
Samford (15-9) qualified for the NCAA Tournament for a second time in three seasons on April 21 by winning the Southern Conference Tournament championship. In the final match of the four-day competition, the Bulldogs rallied for a critical 4-3 triumph over Elon. With the victory, Samford extended its winning streak to four-consecutive matches dating back to April 13.
Harvard (18-5) will be making its second straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament after advancing to the second round of the 2012 event last spring. The Crimson put together another solid season in 2013, finishing its dual-match schedule with an 18-5 overall mark and capturing its second straight Ivy League title with a 6-1 league record.
The dual-season opener saw Harvard take down No. 30 Notre Dame in the ITA Kickoff Weekend and the Crimson went onto capture its second straight Mission Valley Spring Classic title, knocking off No. 37 San Diego State and No. 20 Drake on its annual spring break trip.
The meeting between Samford and Harvard will be the first in program history. The matchup also marks the Bulldogs' first time not meeting a No. 1 seed in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. In 2008, Samford dropped a 4-0 decision at Florida State, while the Bulldogs were similarly defeated at sixth-ranked Georgia in 2011, 4-0.
This season, Samford made SoCon history by being the first NCAA Tournament participant to garner a No. 3 seed in its four-team regional. The Bulldogs, who are in the midst of their fifth season as a member of the SoCon, also made school history for the same reason.
Samford enters the 2013 NCAA Tournament with a four-match winning streak. Since suffering back-to-back, hard-fought 4-3 road losses to Furman (April 7) and Georgia Southern (April 12), the Bulldogs have rattled off consecutive victories against The Citadel, 7-0, Davidson, 4-1, College of Charleston, 4-1, and at Elon, 4-1. Samford's last three wins all came at the SoCon Tournament.
The Bulldogs have faced four top-60 ranked opponents this season, including No. 11 Mississippi State and No. 6-ranked Kentucky. Samford tallied a 1-3 record against ranked opponents, with its victory coming against No. 45 Alabama, 4-3, on Feb. 6.
With Samford's historic 4-3 road triumph over Alabama, the Bulldogs snapped a 31-match losing streak against the Crimson Tide, dating back to May 5, 1961, when the school was named Howard College. Therefore, it was Samford's first win over Alabama in nearly 52 years.
The Bulldogs' true freshman Fares Kilani was recently named the SoCon Men's Tennis Player of the Month. In April alone, Kilani garnered a pair of SoCon Player of the Week honors and was named Second-Team All-SoCon. The Bulldogs' speedster also earned All-SoCon Freshman accolades.
Kilani posted a combined 13-2 record in singles and doubles play in April, helping the Bulldogs to a 6-2 team record and the SoCon Tournament title. He finished the month with a perfect 8-0 mark in singles play at the No. 3 position, winning six of those matches in straight sets.
Samford's Zac Dunkle, Fares Kilani and Austin Akers were all honored by the SoCon this year as the Bulldogs' netters received postseason all-conference awards.
Dunkle, who was nationally-ranked in both singles and doubles play this season, earned First-Team All-SoCon singles honors for a second straight year. The Bulldogs' four-time All-SoCon performer tallied a stellar 7-2 singles record in conference play this season.
The Bulldogs' Kilani received a pair of prestigious SoCon honors as he earned Second-Team accolades and was named to the league's all-freshman team. Kilani finished the conference season with an 18-6 overall record and a brilliant 8-2 record on court No. 3 in SoCon play.
Samford's Akers joined Kilani at No. 5 singles on the All-SoCon Second Team. The Bulldogs' sophomore native of Lexington, Ky., concluded the regular season with a 13-7 overall record and a 7-3 record in SoCon play. On court No. 5 this year, Akers has posted a 14-8 mark and played a key role in Samford's solid 7-3 league record.
The winners of Friday's opening-round matches at the Starkville Regional will face off Saturday at 1 p.m. (CDT) at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on the campus of Mississippi State University. The victor of the four-team regional will advance to next week's Sweet 16 competition being hosted by the University of Illinois in Champagne, Ill.
Live Results
Samford Match Notes
Samford Media Guide
NCAA Tournament Bracket
NCAA Regional Headquarters
Monday, April 28
Monday, April 28
Monday, April 28
Saturday, April 19
