GAINESVILLE, Fla. –The University of South Alabama men's tennis team will travel to Gainesville to take on the No.1 seed Florida Gators in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday as announced by the NCAA selection committee on Monday afternoon.

The 12-7 Jaguars learned of their opponent and the regional location at a watch party at the Hancock Whitney Stadium Hargrove Club.

South Alabama earned the Sun Belt Conference's automatic bid to the event after defeating Georgia State 4-1 in the championship match of the league tournament on Sunday, April 25, the third time in a row the Jaguars have defeated the Panthers to qualify for the NCAA tournament.

This marks the program's 14th appearance in the NCAA tournament after USA claimed its third consecutive Sun Belt title. It will be Coach Brochu's fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament with the Jaguars, as he has taken the program to the postseason in 2008, 2018, 2019 and 2021.  

South owns an 8-13 all-time record in the NCAA tournament, with their last win coming against Tulane (4-1) at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre in Starkville, Miss., on May 3, 2019.

This will be the second meeting in the all-time series between the two clubs, with the Gators claiming a 4-0 victory over the Jaguars on Jan. 27, 2018, in the ITA Kickoff. 

THEY SAID IT 
Head Coach Nick Brochu
- On the NCAA tournament: "We've been in the NCAA's the last two seasons, and that was the goal from day one. You don't just win the Championships. It all starts in the fall in January. We had players come back in the fall, and they worked really hard. We try to keep in mind that the goal is to place in the NCAA's. It's not always about making it to the conference tournaments, but to make it the NCAA's, and we've kept our eyes on the prize the whole season. We've had some ups and downs during the season, but we kept our focus and went to the conference tournament."

"This year, the conference tournament was hard. In previous years, we had some rounds that flew by. This year, the first round was tough, and the second round was extremely long. Then in the final round, I expected nothing less than an awesome match against Georgia State. It was a tough tournament and now we're going to the NCAA's and there's no pressure. We're just going to enjoy it like we did the first two times." 

- On Florida: "Florida is a great team and they are very well-coached. Brian is an awesome coach and they have a lot of talent. They're the No. 1 seed for a reason, but at the same time, we're just going to go out there and play. We don't need to beat all six players on their team. We went to Florida for the ITA Kickoff and they were a great team back then. We were competitive then and we can't wait to play them."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Baseline Club, the tennis-specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Baseline Club go directly to support the South Alabama men's and women's tennis programs. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/baselineclub