Men's Tennis Releases 2017-18 Schedule

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- University of Louisville men's tennis coach Rex Ecarma has announced the 2017-18 schedule, which features matches against nine opponents who competed in the 2017 NCAA Championships, as well as the top three teams in the nation in the 2017 final Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings.

The Cardinals return nine from last year's NCAA Tournament qualifying squad and will play 16 matches and one fall tournament at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center, highlighted by a match against reigning national champion Virginia.

" The excitement around our team and program is very high," said Ecarma. "Our fans will have 16 home matches to cheer the guys on. To have all the singles starters and five of six doubles starters back from last season, gives us many reasons to look forward to this season. This team really enjoyed advancing in the NCAA tournament and want to progress even further this season. We start off the season playing some of the best fall invitationals in the country with a new event in Gainesville, Florida called the UF Ranked Plus 1."

UofL will begin fall play Sept. 8-11 at the Southern Intercollegiates in Athens, Ga. Just four days later, they will travel to Raleigh-Durham, N.C. for the Duke Invitational on Sept. 15-17. Next, the Cardinals will head south to Gainesville, Fla. to compete in the Florida Ranked +1 Tournament from Sept. 22-24.

The Cardinals will split their squad in three from Sept. 29-Oct. 5, as some members of the team will compete at the Middle Tennessee Invitational in Murfreesboro, Tenn. while others will travel to Nashville, Tenn. for the Commodore Scramble. Both tournaments will conclude competition on Oct. 1. Beginning on Sept. 30, select players will head to Tulsa, Okla. to participate in the All-American Championships.

UofL will reconvene in South Bend, Ind., where they will play in the Bobby Bayliss Invitational from Oct. 6-8. The Cardinals will then travel back to the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center to host the Louisville Invitational, where fans will be able to witness the 2017-2018 squad in action for the first time from Oct. 13-15. Four days later, the team will head back to Tennessee from Oct. 19-23 for the Ohio Valley Invitational in Knoxville. The Cardinals will close out October with the Birmingham Futures on Oct. 28-30 in Birmingham, Ala.

To round out fall play, UofL will split up once more to attend either the Oracle National Fall Championships in Indian Wells, Calif. on Nov. 1-5 or the Dick Vitale/Lakewood Ranch Invitational in Lakewood Ranch, Fla. From Nov. 3-5.

"We will start off the spring season in Florida again, but this time playing the USA F4 Pro Futures before our dual match season begins," said Ecarma. "Then we will play Duke at the National Indoor Kick-Off first round weekend. We are glad to be back in the National Kick-Off which we have qualified for eight of the nine times of this tournament."

The spring campaign will kick off on January 12 in Sunrise, Fla. at the USA F4 Futures.
After concluding the tournament on the 17, the Cardinals will head back home to the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center, playing a triple-header with Austin Peay and Arkansas Pine-Bluff on January 18.

After traveling to Purdue to compete against their first 2017 NCAA Tournament opponent, UofL will have a week off of competition before traveling to Ft. Worth, Texas to face Duke in the first round of the 2018 ITA Kick-Off Weekend. Host TCU will face San Diego in the other first round match.

The month of February features a four-match home stand, where the Cardinals will host both Dartmouth and Alabama A&M on Feb. 4 and both Wright State and Charlotte on Feb. 9. Next, Louisville will travel to Norcross, Ga. to face-off against Georgia State, their second 2017 NCAA Tournament qualifier of the spring slate. The Cardinals will then have a one-week hiatus from competition before heading to Northwestern in Evanston, Ill. to square off against their second consecutive 2017 NCAA Tournament opponent.

The Cardinals open up ACC action on March 2, when they welcome defending national champion Virginia to the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center. After a trip to Sound Bend, Ind. to take on Notre Dame, Louisville will return home for a five-match home stretch. To close out March, the team will travel to Tallahassee, Fla. for a 2017 NCAA tournament match-up against Florida State on March 30.

April begins with three straight matches on the road, highlighted by a showdown at national runner-up North Carolina on April 6. The Cardinals return to Louisville on April 13 for their final three matches of the season, beginning with 2017 Elite Eight Wake Forest. Louisville will close out the regular season on April 20 against Virginia Tech.

The 2017 ACC Tennis Championship will

University of Louisville Athletics

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