Oct. 21, 2009

NEW ORLEANS, La. - The Samford University men's tennis team will be facing some of its toughest competition of the 2009 fall season this weekend as the Bulldogs are scheduled to square off against the top teams in the region at the ITA Southern Regional Championship, Oct. 22-25.

The talent-laden field of the four-day competition will consist of 80 players from 14 teams. The schools competing in the 2009 ITA Southern Regional Championships are Samford, Alabama, Auburn, Centenary, Louisiana-Lafayette, LSU, Mississippi State, UNO, South Alabama, Southern Miss, Ole Miss, Troy, Tulane, and UAB.

The tournament will be held at both Tulane's Goldring Tennis Complex and UNO's University Tennis Center.

In August, the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) announced a regional realignment. Beginning with this year, the regions will expand from eight to 12. In the previous alignment, Samford was a part of the Southeast Region, which included most of the Southeast and all of Florida. It was considered by many to be the toughest region in the country. Now, Samford is a member of the Southern Region, which includes Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana.

Tulane and UNO are sharing the hosting duties of this year's Southern Regional. The winner of the singles and doubles events will earn a spot in the ITA National Indoor in November.

The Bulldogs enter the year boasting a roster comprised of one senior, three juniors, five sophomores and a trio of highly-touted freshmen. Senior Kelwin DeWet and juniors Carl Abalos, Oliver Reynolds and Adam Witcher will be Samford's upper-class leaders this season, while sophomores Michael Browder, Joe Hunsicker, Carson Kadi and Ryan Shidler will also add some experience to the Bulldogs' roster.

Also joining Samford this season are true freshmen Zac Dunkle, John Flaniken and Scott Foster. Dunkle is a native of Atlanta, Ga., while Flaniken hails from nearby Pelham, Ala. Foster is a native of Athens, Ga.

The Bulldogs' Kadi will be returning to his hometown this weekend. A native of New Orleans, La., Samford's sophomore attended Jesuit High School and finished his prep career as the second-ranked player in the state.