Men’s Tennis: Georgia To Begin its 40th NCAA Tourney vs. Minnesota

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Men’s Tennis: Georgia To Begin its 40th NCAA Tourney vs. Minnesota

Wayne Montgomery – NCAA Final Four – Georgia vs. UNC – May 22, 2017
Wayne Montgomery

 
 
ATHENS, Ga. — The Georgia men’s tennis team will make its 35th-straight appearance in the NCAA tournament with a trip to Norman, Okla., for the NCAA first and second rounds on May 11-13.
 
 
The announcement came during the NCAA selection show, which aired Tuesday night. Georgia will battle Minnesota in the first round with the winner to face either No. 14 overall seed Oklahoma or Utah. Exact match times will be announced later.
 
 
“We are thrilled to play a very good Minnesota team and to be a part of the first and second rounds in Oklahoma,” head coach Manuel Diaz said. “It’s always an honor to play in the NCAA tournament, and our region is filled with very good teams who all want to advance to the Round of 16. I have always had great respect for the Oklahoma program. They are a deep team that will be a challenge on their home court if we get past Minnesota. I am not sure you will find a more competitive first and second round site, but we are looking forward to the challenge.”
 
 
Georgia finished the 2017-18 season with a 13-10 overall record and 5-7 mark in Southeastern Conference action. The Bulldogs now look to advance to the NCAA Round of 16 and beyond for the 15th-straight year.
 
 
Jan Zielinski, who earned ITA All-America status a year ago, leads the team with a 29-8 overall singles record and 16-2 mark in dual-match action. Zielinski has recently moved to the No. 2 court in singles, where he has won three-straight matches.
 
 
Senior Wayne Montgomery, who is a three-time first-team All-SEC selection, is right behind Zielinski with a 27-17 record in singles. Montgomery teams with Walker Duncan on the doubles courts, where the two boast a 15-6 record.
 
 
As a team, this is Georgia’s 40th all-time NCAA tournament appearance. The Bulldogs have won six NCAA National Championships (1985, 1987, 1999, 2001, 2007 and 2008), while a Georgia player has won the NCAA Singles Championship four times (Mikael Pernfors in 1984 and 1985; Matias Boeker in 2001 and 2002). The Bulldogs have claimed the doubles title on three occasions – Ola Malmqvist and Allen Miller in 1983, Boeker and Travis Parrott, and John Isner and Antonio Ruiz in 2005.
 
 
 
 

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