01/23/06– FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JAGUARS OPEN 2006 SEASON AT HOME AGAINST FLORIDA ATLANTIC
CONTACT: Kit Strief

GAME NOTES IN PDF FORMAT

THE SETTING
The South Alabama men’s tennis team, ranked 62nd in the preseason ITA poll, opens the 2006 dual meet season with Florida Atlantic University on Tuesday at 1 p.m. at the Bruce David Lubel Memorial Courts.

THE SOUTH ALABAMA JAGUARS
The South Alabama Jaguar men’s tennis team opens the 2006 dual match season on Tuesday against Florida Atlantic University. USA is coming off a 17-8 record last year and a third-place finish at the Sun Belt Conference tournament. USA finished the season ranked 51st according to the final ITA poll. Franticek Babej lost in the third round of the NCAA Championships.

This year, USA returns three letterwinners and has six newcomers. In the fall, USA played in three tournaments with freshman Filip Krick posting a team-best 6-3 record in singles. Dias Doskarayev and Kricka were 2-2 in doubles during the fall to lead the team.

FLORIDA ATLANTIC OWLS
The Owls enter the match with an 0-2 mark after losses at #11 Florida State (5-2) and at Troy (5-1). J.P. Bounassar (2-3) has a 2-0 record thus far in dual matches at the #3 position and is one of two Owls to win matches this spring. Mauricio Paiz also has won a match this spring as he defeated his opponent from Troy at the #5 position.

In doubles, the Owls are 0-3 in dual matches and 4-8 overall as Gianfranco Dossena and Paiz are 2-2 overall to lead the team.

David Komie is in his first year as head coach at FAU. Komie, a FAU graduate in 1985 and went 19-1 in doubles his senior year, was an assistant coach at Texas before being named head coach at his alma mater in July, 2005.