ITA Preseason National Rankings

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University men's tennis team will open its 2014 spring campaign in impressive fashion on Jan. 20, as the Bulldogs head into dual-match play as the No. 63-ranked team in the nation, it was officially announced Monday by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA).
 
"We are looking forward to getting started with the 2014 spring season," said Samford head coach Rahim Esmail. "It is always an exciting challenge to watch your team grow and develop the way they do throughout a season. I feel that this team, with the experience that we have in our upper classmen, combined with the hunger of our newcomers to continue a winning tradition that we have built here, has the ability to do great things and really challenge themselves to grow and get better throughout the season.
 
"We have a long way to go and a lot of room for development, and this is an exciting part of our challenging season. We are looking forward to having a great week of practice to get ready for our first competition."
 
Samford's prestigious feat marks the first time in school history that the Bulldogs will open a spring season ranked amongst the nation's elite.
 
At No. 63, Samford heads into its 2014 slate ranked higher than Wisconsin (No. 65), Tulane (No. 68), Purdue (No. 69) and Utah (No. 75).
 
The Bulldogs have also been invited to participate in this season's prestigious ITA Kick-Off Weekend, which will be held on the campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. The annual event features some of the elite teams in the nation and is slated to be held Jan. 24-26.
 
Samford will open the three-day competition against No. 56-ranked Indiana on Jan. 24, and will then face either No. 1-ranked Virginia or No. 64-ranked Elon in the second round of action.
 
This season, the Bulldogs return three competitors from last year's Southern Conference Tournament championship squad, including senior Elliot Barnwell, junior Austin Akers and sophomore Fares Kilani.
 
Samford's 2013-14 roster will also include redshirt freshman Henry Moore, highly-touted true freshman Liam Sullivan and sophomore Trey Carter, who recently transferred from NC State.
 
The Bulldogs are coming off a thrilling 2012-13 season, in which Samford concluded the 2013 campaign as the 60^th-ranked team in the nation, just one spot behind Arkansas.
 
Samford finished the year with a 15-10 overall record and a 7-3 mark in SoCon play. The Bulldogs earned a second-place finish in the league's regular-season schedule and then reeled off SoCon Tournament victories against Davidson, 4-1, College of Charleston, 4-1, and Elon, 4-3, to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
 
The achievement marked the second time in three years that Samford reached the NCAA Tournament.
 
The Bulldogs earned a No. 3 seed in the Mississippi State Regional and squared off with No. 27-ranked Harvard in the opening round of the tournament. Samford battled hard against the Crimson, but ultimately suffered a 4-0 loss to Harvard in a contest held indoors at McCarthy Gymnasium.
 
Despite its loss in the 2013 NCAA Tournament, Samford made history by earning the first No. 3 regional seed of both school and SoCon record. The Bulldogs also garnered their highest ranking in program history (No. 57) and snapped a 31-match, 52-year losing streak versus in-state rival Alabama.
 
The No. 63-ranked Samford University men's tennis team will begin play in its 2014 dual-match season Monday, Jan. 20 at 1 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs welcome the Mercer Bears to the Samford Tennis Complex for a key non-conference matchup.

ITA Preseason National Rankings