Men's Tennis Starts Sun Belt Conference Play At South Alabama And Troy This Weekend

Match 16: Old Dominion (8-7, 0-0) at South Alabama (7-6, 0-0), Mar. 18, 11 a.m. ET
Match 17: Old Dominion at Troy (12-2, 0-0), Mar. 19, 11 a.m. ET
Live Stats – South Alabama; Troy
 
NORFOLK, Va.  – The Old Dominion men's tennis team begins Sun Belt Conference action this weekend with a two-match swing to Alabama. On Saturday, they'll take on South Alabama before heading to Troy for a Sunday morning match with both starting at 11 a.m. ET.
 
"We are excited to start conference play and our first ever Sun Belt matches. The conference is very competitive and I'm expecting a lot of close dual matches," said ODU Head Coach Dominik Mueller. "South Alabama has been an elite team in the conference for years and Troy is a tough place to play at. We are being tested right out of the gate." 
 
ODU (8-7) enters the match coming off a tough three-match Texas trip for Spring Break. Jakob Cadonau, Cosme Rolland De Ravel and Codie van Schalkwyk have seven wins this spring to lead the team in singles. In doubles, the duo of Rolland De Ravel and Francois Le Tallec have a 6-2 mark to lead the Monarchs.
 
South Alabama (7-6) will start conference play coming off a two-match swing to Miami and FAU dropping both contests. In singles, Martin Bugaj and Maxime St-Hilaire lead the Jaguars with 10-2 records this spring. St-Hilaire and Jack Clements top the team in doubles with a 4-3 record at the top spot of the lineup this spring. Clements and Louis Delcour are ranked 42^nd nationally in doubles.
 
ODU won the last meeting with South Alabama 4-0 during the 2016 season in Mobile. Younes Lalami and Brandon Perez are ranked 47^th in doubles for the Monarchs, while the team is currently 75^th nationally.
 
Troy (12-2) will host James Madison on Saturday before tangling with the Monarchs. In singles, Mario Martinez is 12-2 primarily at line one, while Carles Anton is 10-2 primarily at line two. Doubles has the tandem of Noah Martens and Vito Ilinares leading Troy with a 5-3 mark. This will be the first-ever meeting between the schools.
 
The Monarchs will return home to tangle with Georgia State on March 25 and Georgia Southern on March 26.