April 14, 2008

The Southwestern Athletic Conference -- in conjunction with the Greater Alexandria Economic Development Association -- will conduct the 2008 SWAC Men and Women's Tennis Tournament Friday through Saturday, April 17-20, 2008 at the City Park Tennis Complex in Alexandria, La.

The top three teams from both the Conference's Eastern and Western Divisions will meet in single-elimination team competition to crown the men's and women's conference champions.

In the women's bracket, play begins on Thursday with Prairie View A&M and Jackson State meeting at 9:00 am and Alabama A&M and Grambling State playing at 2:00 pm. On Friday, Alcorn State and Southern -- winners of the Eastern and Western Divisions respectively -- will play the winners of the quarterfinal matches.

In Thursday action in the men's bracket, Prairie View A&M and Alabama State will meet at 9:00 am while Alcorn State and Grambling State will take the court at 2:00 pm. On Friday, Jackson State (Eastern Division winner) will play the match one winner at 9:00 am while Southern (Western Division winner) will face the match two winner at 2:00 pm.

Both brackets will conclude with their championship matches taking place at 10:00 am on Sunday.

Women's Team-by-Team Capsules

· Alcorn State (7-1 SWAC play) -- The Lady Braves will be looking to continue their strong season to a tournament title. Sarah Peters, Swetha Devaraj and Claudia Gonzales will be key components to the Lady Braves' success.

· Alabama A&M (5-3 SWAC play) -- Last season's tournament winner will be looking to defend their crown. Led by Charlene Tsangamwe and Me'Shala Johnson, the Lady Bulldogs won four conference matches in a row and were strong in their three conference losses.

· Jackson State (4-4 SWAC play) -- Led by Angela Rose and Paulina Vargas, the Lady Tigers enter the tournament on a three-match win streak. Vargas and her doubles partner Valentina Prado will be called on heavily during the event.

· Southern (8-0 SWAC play) -- The Lady Jaguars went undefeated in conference action and are strong in both singles and doubles. Bethlehem Workeneh and Janelle Mosley were 7-1 as a doubles team in conference play while Kathryn Curtis was undefeated in conference singles action.

· Prairie View A&M (6-2 SWAC play) -- Last season, the Lady Panthers made it to the tournament finals. This season, they once again will be looking to play spoiler and end the season with a tournament title. Melissa Guerrier and Jessica Aguilar are undefeated at the doubles spot this season.

· Grambling State (3-5 SWAC play) -- Sinoyuyo and Nolukhanyo Ndlabhu were 5-1 as a unit in conference play while Sinoyuyo was 7-1 in singles action.

Men's Team-by-Team Capsules

· Jackson State (7-1 SWAC play) -- Nicholas Crawford and Sergio Salinas will lead the Tigers as they won the Eastern Division. Salinas and doubles partner Alajandro Martinez are 5-0 in conference action.

· Alcorn State (5-3 SWAC play) -- Last season's tournament winner enters the event looking to repeat in 2008. Pushpendra Rajpurohit is 6-2 in conference singles action while he and Michael Okada have built a 7-0 record in conference play.

· Alabama State (3-5 SWAC play) -- The Hornets will be looking to be a force during the tournament. Danys Ayleksyeyev is 5-2 in conference action while Brandon Rumph and Raynor DeRizzo are 4-3 in doubles action.

· Southern (8-0 SWAC play) -- Marlon Giche and Tyler Chin are 7-0 in conference play as a unit while Bino Rasedisa is 7-1 in conference singles action. Going undefeated in conference play has built the momentum for the Jaguars entering tournament play.

· Prairie View A&M (6-2 SWAC play) -- Last season, the Panthers made it to the championship match. A repeat trip to the finals could be in the works as Nicolas Bateman (6-1 singles play) and the team of Kudakwashe Nyatoti and Jose Garcia (5-2 in conference play) lead the Panthers.

· Grambling State (4-4 SWAC play) -- Nicholas Rufyikiri went 7-1 in conference play as a singles competitor while he and teammate Javier Castro went 6-2 as a doubles unit. The Tigers will be seeking their first title since 1995.