MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men’s tennis team heads to Denver, Colo. for a pair of weekend matches against Sun Belt Conference foe Denver and Central Florida.

The Jags are slated to do battle with the Pioneers Friday at noon and they will take on the Knights Saturday at noon at the Gates Tennis Center.

“This is our last trip before the conference tournament,” said USA head coach Nick Brochu. “It is always a big rivalry between us and Denver. We didn't play them last week at the shootout, but we were able to see how they play.”

The Jaguars (6-7) enter the weekend after a 1-2 run at this season’s Sun Belt Shootout in Murfreesboro, Tenn. April 2-3. South Alabama downed Troy 4-3 on April 3 to clinch seventh place.

The Jags are led by the current SBC Player of the Week, junior Dauw Kruger (Pretoria, South Africa) and junior Romain Bocaert (Lille, France). In singles, Kruger is 18-8 overall and 9-4 this spring. He is also undefeated in the No. 3 and No. 5 flights. Bocaert holds an 11-8 overall record and has tallied a 9-4 mark in dual matches.

USA leads the all-time series with DU 5-3. In their last meeting No. 29 Denver topped South Alabama 4-2 in the 2010 Sun Belt Shootout.

DU stands at 7-12 in their spring campaign after winning their third Sun Belt Shootout title last weekend. The Pioneers beat No. 66 DePaul 4-3 on April 3.

Denver’s No. 1, Enej Bonin, is 19-9 in singles overall. When Bonin pairs up with Yannick Weihs the duo is 6-2 overall and holds a three-match win streak.

“UCF is also a great team,” said Brochu. “Just like Denver, they have a history of being highly ranked. It will be a tough weekend, but a perfect preparation before our tournament.”

The Jags also lead the all-time series with Central Florida. USA has the 1-0 advantage over the Knights. In their only dual in 1990 South Alabama defeated UCF 8-1.

The Knights (9-11) blanked Bethune-Cookman 7-0 on April 4 at the UCF Tennis Complex.

UCF’s top singles performers include Joe Delinks and Blaze Schwartz. Delinks is 14-12 overall and 10-6 in his spring campaign. Schwartz has posted a 13-18 mark overall and holds a three-match win streak.

Schwartz and Delinks form the Knight’s top doubles tandem going 18-11 overall and 11-8 in dual matches. The pair also holds a three-match win streak.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check with www.usajaguars.com.  Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251)461-1USA(1872).

-USA-