XU Nuggets get rematch with Vanguard at NAIA tournament

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana will play Vanguard at 9 a.m. next Tuesday in the opening round of the NAIA Women's Tennis Championship at Mobile, Ala.

The NAIA announced the pairings Tuesday.

It will be a rematch between the Gold Nuggets (7-21) and the Lions (9-14), who won the final two doubles matches to rally for a 5-4 victory against Xavier on April 5 at Costa Mesa, Calif. Since then Xavier has won 4-of-5 duals, including all three in an NAIA unaffiliated group tournament which earned the Nuggets an automatic bid to nationals.

It will be the sixth time in eight seasons that the Nuggets compete at nationals. They're 5-0 in first-round matchups there, but never have they advanced past the second round.

Vanguard finished fifth in the Golden State Athletic Conference, which has of the tournament's 24 teams, and received the last of 10 at-large bids.

Vanguard was 15th and Xavier 20th in the coaches poll announced Monday. The Nuggets dropped one place from a week ago, but it was the first time this season that the XU women appeared in back-to-back top 25s.

Sophomore Kourtney Howell and freshman Amanda Materre are Xavier's top two players. Howell is 27th in the Campbell's-Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA singles rankings, and Materre is 38th. Howell was the NAIA Women's Tennis Player of the Week for April 23-29.

Auburn Montgomery is the defending champion. Copeland-Cox Tennis Center is the tournament venue.

NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll(first-place votes in parentheses — records through Sunday, May 6)

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Last
1	Auburn Montgomery (13)	22-2	343	1
2	Fresno Pacific	20-4	332	2
3	Embry-Riddle (Fla.)	18-3	321	3
4	Oklahoma Christian	16-3	310	4
5	Azusa Pacific	17-3	299	5
6	Point Loma Nazarene	16-5	286	6
7	Brenau	13-5	279	7
8	Concordia (Calif.)	14-7	266	8
9	William Carey	14-9	253	9
10	Southern Nazarene	12-5	243	10
11	Lindsey Wilson	15-3	231	tie-11
12	Shorter	19-8	226	tie-11
13	SCAD Savannah	9-3	209	13
14	Lewis-Clark State	7-14	201	14
15	Vanguard	9-14	187	15
16	Indiana Wesleyan	22-2	181	16
17	Campbellsville	13-6	158	18
18	Lee (Tenn.)	9-7	154	17
19	Westmont	7-11	145	20
20	Xavier	7-21	141	19
21	Martin Methodist	11-4	126	21
22	Robert Morris (Chicago)	17-2	126	22
23	St. Thomas (Fla.)	5-4	97	23
24	Oklahoma Baptist	10-8	89	24
25	Marian (Ind.)	21-6	76	25
Others receiving votes: Northwestern Ohio 68, Davenport 36, Webber International 35, Belhaven 27, Nebraska Wesleyan 26, Olivet Nazarene 10, Georgetown (Ky.) 9, Bethel (Kan.) 8, Indiana Southeast 4, Missouri Valley 3, Milligan 1.

Tournament bracket (PDF) NAIA tournament website

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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