University of Minnesota Athletics
Golden Gophers Awarded NCAA Regional Bid in Miami
5/3/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Host Miami earned the No. 9 seed for the NCAA Championships and will take on Manhattan in the first round. The two winners will meet in the regional final Sunday, May 14 for the right to advance to Stanford University for the final four rounds of the NCAA Championships.
The Golden Gophers, 7-3 in the Big Ten in 2006, were eliminated in the quarterfinals of last weekend's 2006 Big Ten Championship, falling 4-2 to Penn State. Minnesota, Big Ten Champion Ohio State, Illinois, Michigan and Penn State claimed bids to the NCAA Championships from the Big Ten.
LSU (22-11) was upset in the first round of the SEC Tournament last weekend, falling 4-2 to 12th-seeded Mississippi State. Miami (18-4) is ranked ninth in the nation after losing to Virginia in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament. Manhattan (16-4) defeated Marist to capture the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. Minnesota, LSU and Miami each received one of 33 at-large bids.
Minnesota's last appearance in the NCAA Championships came in 2004 when the Golden Gophers fell to Clemson, 4-0, in the first round in Durham, N.C. The Maroon and Gold's best finish in the NCAA Championships is a tie for ninth place in five different seasons.
For more information on the 2006 NCAA Men's Tennis Championships, log onto ncaasports.com. For information on the regional in Miami, go to hurricansports.com.
