May 5, 2004

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The University of North Carolina men's tennis team received the No. 11 seed and the University of North Carolina women's team copped the No. 14 seed as both will host regionals in the 2004 NCAA Division I Tennis Tournament at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center the weekend of May 14-16.

The women's draw will feature first-round matches on Friday, May 14 with the winners meeting in the second round on Saturday, May 15. Carolina (19-8) will meet Big South Conference champion Winthrop (16-2) in one first-round match while the other first-round match will feature Tennessee (13-13) against Wisconsin (13-11).

"We're thrilled that the men and the women are going to host a regional and get to play in front of our fans at home," said Brian Kalbas, Carolina women's tennis head coach. "To earn such an honor is a testament to our great season and the strength of the conference. Hosting gives us the best chance to move on to the final site in Athens, Ga."

UNC's men (22-4), Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season co-champions, will face South Carolina State (16-4), champion of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in a first-round NCAA Tournament match on Saturday, May 15. The other men's first-round match at Chapel Hill will feature South Carolina (15-13) against Ohio State (23-4). Match times will be announced Thursday. The winners of the first round matches will play Sunday, May 16 in a second-round match for the right to advance to the Final 16 in Tulsa, Okla.

"I'm very excited to host a regional for our team and for our fans," said UNC head men's coach Sam Paul. "It's also very exciting our women's team is getting a chance to host a regional. Three excellent men's tennis teams are coming to Chapel Hill. We look forward to playing South Carolina State. Seven teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference received bids. That shows the overall strength of our league this year."

Tickets per day are $5 for adults and $3 for students and gates will open one hour before the start of the first match.

The winners of the regionals will advance to the Final 16 of the NCAA Tournaments with the women playing at Athens, Ga., and the men at Tulsa, Okla.