XU Gold Rush are ninth in NAIA preseason coaches poll



ZACH TAYLOR
5' 8"/160 SENIOR
MONROE, LOUISIANA
ST. FREDERICK (VENTURA JC)



NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana is beginning the 2012 men's tennis season the way it finished 2011: among the top 10 NAIA teams in the country.

The Gold Rush are ninth in the preseason coaches poll announced Tuesday. The XU men were eighth -- their highest ranking ever -- in the final poll a year ago and reached the second round of the NAIA National Championship for the third consecutive season.

Beginning with the poll of April 4, 2007, Xavier has been in every men's top 25.

This is the first Xavier team to earn a preseason top-10 ranking since the women's basketball team was seventh to start 1997-98.

In the women's tennis preseason poll, Xavier collected one point did not make the top 25. The Gold Nuggets had appeared in 44 consecutive top 25s before that streak ended in 2011.

Both Xavier teams, losers to Tulane in their openers during the weekend, will play the University of New Orleans at 4 p.m. Friday at City Park/Pepsi Tennis Center. The duals were pushed back from Wednesday by mutual agreement of coaches Alan Green of Xavier and Burzis Kanga of UNO.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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