The No. 5-seed Ole Miss men’s tennis team hosts the SEC Tournament this weekend and begins play today against No. 12-seed Alabama. On the women’s side, No. 9-seed Ole Miss meets No. 8-seed South Carolina in the SEC Tournament, which is hosted by Mississippi State.
Jonas Lutjen returns the ball during a match earlier this season. (Quentin Winstine/The DM)
Eleven of the nation’s top 25 teams descend upon Oxford this weekend, as Ole Miss (15-7, 7-5 SEC) hosts the Southeastern Conference Men’s Tennis Tournament at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center. Admission to all matches is free.
Play kicked off Wednesday with No. 12-seed Alabama defeating No. 13-seed Arkansas, 4-2. No. 5-seed Ole Miss will meet Alabama today at 3 p.m. The winner will advance to play No. 4-seed Texas A&M Friday at 3 p.m.
“You see how hard it is to win on the road in the SEC, so we know that hosting this tournament, especially in a year where it’s wide open, we need to take advantage of playing at home and make it our week,” head coach Billy Chadwick said.
The Rebels, ranked No. 6 in the nation, won the SEC Western Division Championship for the 10th time, its first division title since 2009, and tied for third in the overall standings with Florida, South Carolina and Texas A&M.
“When you look around the draw, there is no such thing as a good draw in this tournament because all the teams are so tough,” Chadwick said.
“We finished tied for third overall with three other teams, and with the tiebreaker system, we are seeded No. 5 in the tournament. To put it into perspective, we are ranked No. 6 nationally. That tells you how tough the SEC is.”
In the regular-season meeting between Ole Miss and Alabama (13-12, 3-9 SEC), which was played indoors in Tuscaloosa, freshman Stefan Lindmark won a third-set tiebreaker, 12-10, to clinch a 4-3 win for the Rebels. Ole Miss also has wins against the top two seeds in the tournament, Georgia and Tennessee.
“Having beaten the top two teams, we have got a lot of confidence that we know we can beat them,” Chadwick said. “With that being said, we’re definitely not looking past Thursday.”
The Rebels boast three nationally ranked players in singles, led by sophomore Nik Scholtz (No. 15) and senior Jonas Lutjen (No. 16), who also combine for nation’s No. 5-ranked doubles team.
Scholtz missed the match against Florida then retired in the match against South Carolina with an elbow injury, but returned to action this past weekend against Texas A&M and looks to be ready to for the SEC Tournament this weekend.
“Nik is 100 percent,” Chadwick said. “Nik has been having some elbow issues, and it’s slowed him down for really the last three weeks, but he’s getting better every day. He was much, much stronger in the match against Texas A&M. We are feeling like he’s going to be close to 100 percent come Thursday.”
Ole Miss seeks its fourth SEC Tournament Championship, its first title since 2009, as well as to bolster its case to host an NCAA regional, which is set for May 10-11.
“We feel like we’re in a strong position to host now, and that’s just based on the rankings, our wins and projecting where we’re going to fit in at the end of things,” Chadwick said.
“I feel comfortable making plans to host here. At the same time, our work is not done, and we can absolutely better our position going into the NCAAs with a good showing here in the SEC Tournament.”
Lady Netters begin SEC Tournament play against South Carolina
The No. 9-seed Ole Miss women’s tennis team travels to Starkville for the Southeastern Conference Women’s Tennis Tournament, where it will face No. 8-seed South Carolina today at 8 a.m. The winner advances to play top-seeded Georgia in the quarterfinals Friday at 8 a.m.
Ole Miss (15-12, 5-7 SEC), ranked No. 39 in the nation, split its last two matches against Missouri and Texas A&M.
The Rebels are led by junior Caroline Rohde-Moe, who is ranked No. 44 in the nation and combines with freshman Marija Milutinovic for the nation’s No. 40-ranked doubles team.
South Carolina (13-10, 6-7 SEC), ranked No. 30 in the nation, won the regular season meeting, 4-0, in Columbia.
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