No. 2 Abbes one of five ranked Xavier singles players

XU freshman Nour Abbes has yet to lose a collegiate singles match.

NEW ORLEANS — Nour Abbes is No. 2, a record for a Xavier University of Louisiana women's player, in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's NAIA national rankings announced Wednesday.
   
Abbes is one of five ranked singles players from Xavier. Teammate Kourtney Howell is 16th, and Brion Flowers is 27th. On the men's team, Kyle Montrel is 16th, and Nikita Soifer is 29th.
   
Howell had been the highest-ranked Gold Nugget at No. 6 last season. But Abbes, a freshman from Tunis, Tunisia, and a graduate of Lycée Sportif d'El Menzah, reached No. 4 in the March 12 rankings. Abbes is 13-0 in singles — six victories against NCAA Division I opponents — and 11-2 in doubles.
   
In the NAIA national doubles rankings, Howell and Flowers are fifth, and Montrel and Soifer are 20th.
   
In the ITA's South region singles rankings, Abbes is second, Howell ninth and Flowers 16th. Montrel is fifth among men in the South, and Soifer is 13th.

Howell and Flowers are fourth in the South in doubles, and Montrel and Soifer are seventh.
   
Howell is a senior from Cypress, Texas, and a graduate of Cypress Woods High School. Flowers is a sophomore from Lafayette, La. (St. Thomas More), Montrel is a sophomore from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy), and Soifer is a junior from Beer Sheva, Israel (Hof Hasharon).
   
The Gold Nuggets' next dual will be April 25 in the NAIA Unaffiliated Group 2 Tournament in New Orleans. Pairings and times will be announced next week. The Gold Rush will play the University of New Orleans at 3 p.m. Thursday at XU Tennis Center. Day and venue of that dual were moved.


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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