SACRAMENTO, Calif. — For the first time since 2013, the Sacramento State men's tennis team will make an appearance at the NCAA Tournament, it was announced today by the selection committee.
The Hornets (17-6), who earned an automatic berth into the NCAA's after defeating a pair of teams at last weekend's Big Sky Conference Tournament, will travel to Austin to take on No. 2 seed Texas (22-3) in the first round. The two teams will play Friday, May 3, at 11 a.m. PT.
The other first round matchup in Austin will feature UCLA (14-7) and LSU (16-13) playing at 8 a.m. PT. The winners of those two first round matches will meet in the second round on Saturday, May 4, at 2 p.m. PT.
Sacramento State will be playing Texas for the first time ever. Of the Hornets' 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, this season marks just the second time the Hornets are being shipped outside of California (2007 in Stillwater, Okla.).
The Hornets will enter the NCAA Tournament as winners of eight of their last nine matches. The team completed the regular season with a 7-1 league record, a Big Sky co-regular season championship and the program's 12th Big Sky Tournament title. The Hornets defeated both Idaho State (4-2) and Northern Arizona (4-1) at this past weekend's conference tournament.
The Hornets play five seniors in their singles lineup, and are led by
Mark Keki who was named the Big Sky's MVP after going 17-2 in singles play, and 15-3 in doubles. In fact, the Hornets' first three players in the singles ladder were all named first team all-conference, including No. 2
Mate Voros (Big Sky Tournament MVP) and No. 3
Jan Silva.
Sacramento State will be making its 11th NCAA Tournament appearance (1999, 2001-03, 2007, 2009-13, 2024). The program has won 12 Big Sky Tournament championships (1998-99, 2001-03, 2007, 2009-13, 2024).
Of Sacramento State's 10 NCAA Tournament appearances thus far, the team has lost its first round matchups at Stanford four times (1999, 2002, 2009 and 2012), UCLA twice (2001, 2010), USC (2011), Cal (2003) and Oklahoma State (2007).
Sacramento State has now drawn the regional host in the first round of all 11 of the team's appearances at the NCAA Tournament.
