Aug. 13, 2010
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Each spring, the UCF men's tennis team faces one of the most challenging schedules in the country. The 2011 dual-match season is no different as the Knights will meet nine squads that finished this past season ranked among the top-75 squads in the country.
Head coach Bobby Cashman announced UCF's spring schedule Friday. The Knights will play 12 matches at the UCF Tennis Complex, including contests against Miami and Tulsa.
Five of UCF's opponents finished the 2010 campaign in the top-40 of the ITA national rankings. The Knights finished the year ranked 74th.
"Our goal each year is to get into and stay in the national rankings," Cashman said. "You need to face ranked teams in order to do that. We feel that this schedule will give us the chance to face some of the best teams in the country. It is a very challenging schedule, but our guys are really looking forward to it."
UCF will open the season on Jan. 23, hosting Georgia State. The team's first road match will come on Feb. 4 at Florida. The Gators finished last season ranked eighth in the country. The contest in Gainesville is one of three away from home for the Knights in February. The team will also meet host Indiana on Feb. 11, and then face Drake the following day in Bloomington.
After playing Drake, Cashman's team will begin a nine-match homestand on Feb. 18 versus Troy. The long stretch includes a match against Miami (No. 43) on March 4, and concludes with a showdown against fellow Conference USA program Tulsa on March 15. The Golden Hurricane ended 2010 ranked 37th in the country.
Following the home stretch, UCF will head to Houston for the Rice Invitational March 18-20. At the event, the Knights will meet USF, Texas Tech (No. 15) and C-USA foe Rice (No. 30).
The C-USA Championship is set for Tulsa, Okla., starting on April 21.
UCF went 12-8 a year ago while facing a slate that included eight ranked teams. The Knights return several key letterwinners from last season, including senior Blaze Schwartz (Pensacola, Fla.) and junior Claudio Romano (Valencia, Venezuela).