XU Gold Rush receive first-round bye for third straight year

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana earned a third consecutive first-round bye and its highest seeding ever Tuesday in the NAIA Men's Tennis National Championship at Mobile, Ala. The Gold Rush will play at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 15 against the winner of a May 14 opening-round match between Belhaven and Spring Arbor.
    
The XU men (14-7) are seeded sixth after receiving a No. 7 seed a year ago and a No. 8 seed in 2011. Their appearance at nationals next week will be their fifth in a row.
Copeland-Cox Tennis Center will be the site of all matches. All men's duals are scheduled for 9 a.m. The championship round of the 24-team, single-elimination event is scheduled for Saturday, May 18.
    
Xavier, Auburn Montgomery, Embry-Riddle (Fla.) and Westmont are the only NAIA men's teams to receive first-round byes each of the last three seasons.
    
A year ago the Gold Rush defeated Point Loma Nazarene 5-0 to become the first XU team in any sport to reach the national quarterfinals since 1973. Embry-Riddle eliminated the Rush 5-1 in the quarterfinals.
    
Senior Loic Didavi, sophomore Nikita Soifer, freshman Kyle Montrel and junior Viktor Svoboda are Xavier's top players. Didavi was fourth, Soifer 17th and Montrel 34th in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA singles rankings. In doubles, Didavi and Montrel were 15th, and Soifer and Svoboda were 23rd. Didavi and Svoboda both played for Xavier in 2012. Alan Green is in his 10th season as coach of XU's men's and women's teams.
    
The XU men will enter the tournament with 11 victories in their last 14 duals and five victories this season against ranked NAIA opponents. The Gold Rush have four victories against NCAA Division I opponents.
    
Xavier never has played Spring Arbor but won 5-4 at home against Belhaven on Feb. 28. In the coaches poll announced Monday, Belhaven was ranked 11th, and Spring Arbor was among others receiving votes and 34th overall.
    
The two most recent men's champions, Fresno Pacific (2011) and Oklahoma Christian (2012), no longer compete in the NAIA. Embry-Riddle is seeded first, and Auburn Montgomery — winner of six of the past 11 titles, including 2010 — is seeded second. A second-round victory could match Xavier against third-seeded Vanguard, 22-0 and the tournament's only unbeaten team, in the quarterfinals.

Tournament bracket  (PDF)

Xavier Men's Tennis at the
NAIA National Championship (3-4)

Date (Day)	Round	Opponent	W/L	Score
May 12, 2009 (Tue.)	1st	Oklahoma Christian	W	5-4
May 13, 2009 (Wed.)	2nd	Auburn Montgomery	L	0-5
May 18, 2010 (Tue.)	1st	Tennessee Wesleyan	W	5-3
May 19, 2010 (Wed.)	2nd	Fresno Pacific	L	1-5
May 18, 2011 (Wed.)	2nd	Vanguard	L	3-5
May 16, 2012 (Wed.)	2nd	Point Loma Nazarene	W	5-0
May 17, 2012 (Thu.)	QF	Embry-Riddle (Fla.)	L	1-5

By Ed Cassiere, SID
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA