April 14, 2008

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - - The Tiger men's tennis team has drawn the unenviable task of facing the host team in the opening round of the Conference USA Championship for a third straight season. Memphis will face host SMU, Friday, at 2 p.m. in the 2008 C-USA Championships.

Memphis has faced the host team in each of the previous two tournaments, facing Tulsa in 2006 and Rice in 2007. The match-up with No. 3 seed SMU will be the second meeting of the season between the two programs, as the two teams faced one another back on Mar. 29th in the front end of a Tiger double-header at two different ranked opponents' sites. SMU won that match, 6-1, with Charlie Ramsay being the one Tiger to put a point on the board while two of his teammates also played three set matches.

Tulsa is the No. 1 seed in the draw, while Rice earned a No. 2 seed. SMU was No. 3, followed by UAB and UCF at No. 4 and 5, respectively. UAB and UCF will play the first match of the tournament at 8 a.m., Friday. Memphis was the No. 6 seed, followed by East Carolina and Southern Miss. Southern Miss will face top-seeded Tulsa at 11 a.m., Friday, followed by the Tigers/Mustangs match at 2 p.m. Rice and East Carolina will play the final match of the afternoon, beginning at 5 p.m.

The winner of the SMU/Memphis match will face the winner of the Rice/East Carolina match at 2 p.m. on Saturday.

The match will be played at the SMU Tennis Center. Single day tickets are available for $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for youth. Groups of 10 or more can receive a discounted ticket for $3.00. All-Tournament tickets (for all days) are available for $10.00 for adults and $6.00 for youth. Group all-tournament ticket prices are $6.00.

VIP All-Tournament Passes (admitting 4 individuals) are also available for purchase for $150.00 when purchased before April 17, 2008. The VIP ticket includes catering and parking passes in addition to the four admission tickets. All tickets can be purchased online at: http://ev10.evenue.net/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/SEGetGroupList?groupCode=GS&linkID=smu&shopperContext=&caller=&appCode