Fans will get their first glimpse of the 2020 University of Georgia men’s and women’s tennis teams at the second annual ‘First Serve’ event this Saturday at 1 p.m. inside the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Center. 

This year’s First Serve will raise the curtain on the 2020 spring tennis season as both squads will participate in team exhibitions, poster signings and a kids/adult tennis clinic. Jeff Dantzler, University of Georgia and Athens radio personality, will serve as the emcee for the second-straight year. 

Last season, close to 500 spectators packed the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor center for the first-ever First Serve. The tennis version of Midnight Madness was considered a huge success as fans were able to watch the teams battle it out on the court and were able to take part in a clinic, which was hosted by coaches and players from both squads. 

“First Serve is truly a one-of-a-kind event,” men’s head coach Manuel Diaz said. “I remember looking out last year and was just overwhelmed by the amount of people who showed up and made it very special. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect the best fans in collegiate tennis with both our teams. We look forward to hosting another large crowd and having a lot of fun. You do not want to miss this.” 

This year’s women’s team returns eight letterwinners, including 2018 National Player of the Year Katarina Jokic. The Bulldogs had a remarkable season a year ago, winning the ITA Indoor National Championship and the SEC title on their way to finishing as the NCAA National Runner-Up. 

“We’re all really looking forward to the second annual First Serve event.” women’s head coach Jeff Wallace said. “Last year it was a huge success. We put it together in kind of a short notice and it was a great turnout and just a really amazing event. I think the players are excited about with how it went last year and we all understand the format better and I think we’re really hoping that the fans and the community will come out and support both the women’s and men’s teams here.”

Georgia’s men’s team returns eight of 11 letterwinners to go along with another top-5 signing class. Among the Bulldogs’ returners is Philip Henning, who finished the fall season ranked No. 12 nationally. 

The men’s team’s first home match will be Monday against Kennesaw State at 2 p.m. ET. The women host the ITA Kick-Off Weekend on Jan. 25-26 here in Athens.