No. 28 Auburn faces another ranked SEC opponent on the road in men's tennis this weekend, as the Tigers travel to No. 39 Ole Miss for a 3 p.m. match Friday at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center in Oxford.
"We've played Ole Miss close the last four years, home or away. I think the guys are ready to go," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said; the Tigers have lost 4-3 to Ole Miss in their last three meetings. "Ole Miss is a tough team one to six – the number one guy for them is among the top-ranked players in the country. Their No. 1 doubles team is No. 12 in the country, but with that said, I'd put our top singles and doubles up against anybody in the country, because I know the results they've had in the past and I know what they're capable of doing.
"Doubles will be important; they're very good in doubles, one to three, and one to six in the singles. If we have all six guys show up, I think we have a slight edge on the singles lineup. We're 14-4, so we have a lot of confidence and we've had a lot of wins that we've got to continue to build upon.
"With four of our five most recent matches on the road, it's a bit of a tough stretch. It will be nice this week; it is away but it's only a one-match weekend, so we'll get a bit more rest on the back end as we begin the second half of the SEC schedule."
Auburn is 14-4 for the spring season, 3-2 in SEC play and ranked No. 39 in the latest ITA team ratings. Ole Miss is 11-7 overall and 1-4 in conference action.
In the latest ITA individual rankings, the Tigers continue to have three ranked players in singles: Tyler Stice (91), Tad Maclean (111) and Jan Galka (115). Maclean and Finn Murgett are ranked No. 60 nationally as a doubles tandem. Maclean, with 65 career doubles wins, now ranks ninth all-time among Auburn career leaders in that category.
Ole Miss is ranked No. 39 in the team rankings; Nikola Slavic is No. 36 in singles and inn Reynolds is No. 110. Reynolds and Lukas Engelhardt are No. 12 in doubles.
The Tigers' next home action is Friday, April 1, hosting No. 33 Mississippi State at 3 p.m. that day. All Auburn home tennis action is at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (1717 Richland Road, Auburn) and admission is free.
