April 24, 2008

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Fresh off of recording its third-straight Star Match victory over Army last week, the Navy tennis team will attempt to win its second Patriot League Tournament title in as many years this weekend when the Mids take part in the league championship being held in Hamilton, N.Y.

The Mids garnered the top seed in the seven-team field by posting a 5-0 record against league opponents during the regular season. With the top seed comes a quarterfinal round bye for the Mids, so Navy's first match will be in the semifinal round against the winner of Friday's quarterfinal match between #4 Colgate and #5 Lafayette. That semifinal match will be held Saturday (10 a.m.), with the championship match slated for Sunday (1 p.m.).

Weather permitting, all matches will be contested outdoors at the J.W. Abrahamson Memorial Courts on the Colgate campus. Should poor weather force the matches indoors, they will instead by played at the Eastside Racquet Club Fitness in Manlius, N.Y. If the matches do have to be played indoors, Navy's semifinal match will be played at 4:30 p.m. and the title tilt will take place at 3 p.m.

"We are excited to compete in the Patriot League Championship," said Navy head coach John Officer. "We know we will have to be ready to play our best tennis in order to bring home a championship. The team is doing a good job of preparing this week."

Tournament-host Colgate posted a 2-3 record against the league this year. One of its losses was a 6-1 setback to Navy one month ago in Hamilton. Lafayette, meanwhile, compiled a 2-4 record in the Patriot League this season, with the Mids handing the Leopards a 7-0 loss in late February in Annapolis.

The other half of the bracket features #2 Army (5-1) facing #7 Holy Cross (0-3) and #3 Bucknell (3-2), taking on #6 Lehigh (1-5). Navy recorded a 4-3 win over Army last week in Annapolis, a 4-1 victory over Bucknell in Lewisburg and a 7-0 win over Lehigh in Annapolis. The Mids did not face the Crusaders during the regular season.