On Friday, the Texas A&M men’s and women’s tennis teams will begin their quest to win their first SEC tournament championships.
Both teams are ranked No. 10 nationally and went a combined 25-0 at home this season and both made the semifinals of the SEC tournament last year before losing to Georgia and Florida, respectively.
The Aggie men (21-6, 10-2 SEC) will travel to Nashville, Tenn., and compete at the Currey Tennis Center on the University of Vanderbilt campus.
The men hold the 2-seed in the tournament, giving them an immediate ticket to the quarterfinals. They will face the winner of South Carolina and Alabama at 12 p.m. Friday, both of whom they defeated 4-1 and 4-0 respectively earlier this season. With a win, the team will advance to the tournament semifinals for the second year in a row.
Sophomore Shane Vinsant enters the tournament after garnering SEC Co-Player of the Week honors and finished SEC play with a record of 8-0 in singles matches. Vinsant is tied for the most singles wins in league play with 16.
The A&M women (17-5, 10-3 SEC) will begin their tournament run at 5 p.m. Thursday against the winner of the Arkansas-Missouri match inside the Mizzou Tennis Complex in Columbia, Mo.
A&M swept both the Tigers and the Razorbacks 4-0 this season in College Station. The women are the 5-seed, which gives them a first-round bye in the tournament. A win will give them a rematch opportunity against the Florida Gators – who swept the Aggies 4-0 earlier this season in Gainesville.
Freshman Saska Gavriloska earned Co-SEC Freshman of the Week honors for her performance against the Ole Miss Rebels. Gavriloska’s comeback win against Ole Miss’s Julia Jones helped secure A&M’s undefeated home record this season.