The Virginia men's tennis team is preparing to host a plethora of schools this weekend in the first U.Va. Invitational. The tournament will run from tonight through Sunday at the Snyder Tennis Center.
Fourteen schools will participate in the event, eight of which finished the 2002 season ranked by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. These teams include No. 18 Alabama, No. 19 Virginia Commonwealth, No. 27 Wake Forest, No. 49 Louisville, No. 51 Rice, No. 66 Iowa, No. 72 Nebraska and No.73 Old Dominion.
American University, Charleston Southern, Liberty, NC State, host Virginia and Virginia Tech round out the lineup.
The Cavaliers competed in the Homewood Suites Fall Tribe Classic at William & Mary last weekend. Over the course of three days of play, Virginia notched an impressive 14 victories, including a noteworthy nine wins on the first day.
A number of key players will miss match play this weekend, however, due to illness. Freshman Doug Stewart and sophomore Stephen Nolen are projected to be on the disabled list, forcing other Cavaliers like freshman Rylan Rizza, senior Mike Duquette and sophomore Dillon Walker to pick up the reins.
"Rylan beat the No. 2 Notre Dame guy, and we are very pleased with his results," Virginia Coach Brian Bland said. "The freshman have all looked good. Mike Duquette has been an unbelievable leader this season. I couldn't be more pleased with the way he has played."
This weekend's matches will be another pre-season test for the Cavaliers, who spent the majority of last season sliding down the ITC rankings. Three singles draws of 32 players and three doubles draws of 16 teams will be featured in the upcoming three-day event. Six nationally ranked players will be gunning it out in the first flight, including Virginia's own Doug Stewart, a freshman from Malibu, Calif.
"Fall tournaments are kind of like a look into the future," Nolen said. "It will be good to get some more practice for everyone on the team. The freshmen have looked really good and tournaments like these help them get prepared for the spring season."
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