Both Ole Miss men’s and women’s tennis will travel out of state for the final conference matches of the season this weekend. The men’s team heads to Fayetteville to take on the No. 47 Arkansas Razorbacks, while the No. 6 women’s team will travel to Starkville to play the No. 27 Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Coming off their final home match of the season, the Ole Miss men’s tennis team is ready to take on their next conference opponent at Arkansas this upcoming Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
This is the last regular season match for the Rebels before heading into the SEC Tournament just ten days later. With a conference record of 3-8, Ole Miss could use a win heading into the tournament.
Despite the loss to their rivals from Starkville last weekend, the men’s team is hoping to keep up the momentum that freshman Finn Reynolds and senior Grey Hamilton started against the Bulldogs when both players earned singles wins against the No. 7 opponent.
The Arkansas Razorbacks, who share the same 3-8 conference record as the Rebels, have beaten Alabama, Georgia and LSU.. Although their conference record may not show it, the men’s tennis team has had a winning season with overall record of 13-10 and quality wins against ranked teams such as Virginia and Baylor.
Zvonimir Babic prepares to take a backhand shot in a match against LSU earlier this season. Ole Miss Men’s Tennis will play at Florida on Friday. Photo by Billy Schuerman
The Ole Miss women’s team, who have had a little more luck in conference play, hold a current record of 8-4 and are fresh off a six-match winning streak. Heading into the match against the Bulldogs, who have a conference record of 6-6, the Rebels will look to keep the hot streak rolling.
The Rebels, who have been ranked in the Top 25 for 13 consecutive weeks this season, will take on the Bulldogs at 4:00 p.m. on Friday looking to lock up one last win in the regular season against the Starkville adversary.
The women’s team has defeated everyone in-conference except for No. 3 Vanderbilt, No. 20 Auburn, No. 7 South Carolina and No. 10 Florida.
Freshman Sabina Machalova will be one to look out for on the court this weekend. Named SEC co-freshman of the week, she is the third player in program history to earn freshman of the week honors more than once. Earning it back on March 28, Machalova has a record to prove sitting 4-4 in the SEC and is 17-10 overall.
The SEC tournament looms on the horizon for both teams as they finish up their regular season play. The men’s tournament will take place in Tuscaloosa, Alabama from April 25-29, while the women will head to Knoxville, Tennessee from April 18-22.
