Owls Head To Austin For Fourth-Straight NCAA Championship
5/3/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
May 3, 2006
2006 NCAA Championships Bracket
HOUSTON -- The Rice men received a bid to the NCAA championships for the fourth-straight year and face Louisiana-Lafayette in first-round action on May 13 in Austin, the NCAA announced Wednesday.
The Owls are 18-7 this year and received an at-large bid after finishing second in Conference USA and ranking 29th nationally. The bid is also the program's fifth in the last six years. During the course of the season, Rice took on 11 teams that earned bids to the championship, including first and second round host Texas.
Seniors Tony Haerle and Robert Searle lead Rice this season as the pair are ranked 18th nationally with their 13-5 record at number-one singles. Searle also ranks 28th in singles with his 27-11 overall record, 16-6 in dual action.
The Ragin' Cajuns are 16-6 this season and are the reigning Sun Belt Conference champions. Rice and ULL were scheduled to play in February, but bad weather in the Lafayette, La., region forced the cancellation of the match.
The Longhorns, the 2006 Big 12 champs, are seeded third in the bracket and will take on Tennessee Tech in the opening round. Wins by both Rice and Texas on May 13 would set up yet another battle between the two schools on May 14.
The Owls upset the third-ranked Longhorns on April 12 in a 5-2 victory at the Jake Hess Tennis Stadium. The two teams also faced off in the second round of the NCAA championships in Austin in 2003, when Texas held on for a 4-3 win to advance. Additionally, Texas eliminated Rice from the NCAA championships in 2005 with a 4-3 first-round decision in Waco.
A pair of wins at the regional site in Austin would send the Owls to Palo Alto, Calif., for the sweet 16. Stanford hosts the 2006 NCAA Men's and Women's Tennis Championships, both team and individuals, May 20-29. The bracket for the singles and doubles championships will be announced on Thursday.
Players Mentioned
