Northwestern University Athletics
`Cats Challenge Crimson in First Round of NCAA Tournament
5/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
May 7, 2015
| #28 Northwestern (20-9, 8-3) vs. #34 Harvard (19-7, 5-2) |
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| Date | Friday, May 8 | 1 p.m. |
| Location | Headington Family Tennis Center | Norman, Okla. |
| Live Scoring | SoonerSports.com |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 28 Northwestern continues postseason play this weekend in the opening rounds of the 2015 NCAA Men's Tennis Tournament. NU (20-9) enters a challenging bracket and will face familiar rival No. 34 Harvard (19-7) in the first round on Friday at 1 p.m.
On the other side of group play, New Mexico State (11-13) will take on No. 1 Oklahoma (24-2), the host as well as the tournament's overall first seed. The winners of each match will play each other on Saturday, May 9 at 1 p.m.
The tournament's first and second rounds are held May 8-10 at 16 regional sites around the country. The final three rounds are set for May 17-19 at the Hurd Tennis Center on the campus of Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
Northwestern received an at-large-bid last week for what will be its fourth consecutive tournament appearance and 14th overall. The `Cats are 8-13 all-time in NCAA competition, and reached as far as the round of 16 in 1990 and 1997.
NU completed conference play two weekends ago at the Big Ten Tournament. Seeded fourth, the `Cats had a first round bye before beating fifth-seeded No. 44 Indiana 4-1 in quarterfinals. In the semis, Northwestern fell 4-0 to first-seeded No. 4 Illinois, also the host.
Sophomore Sam Shropshire, a First-Team All-Big Ten selection, leads the team at No. 48 in singles. He also makes up the No. 64 doubles pair with senior Alex Pasareanu.
In 2014, Northwestern went to South Bend, Ind. for the NCAA Regional, but lost 4-1 to Ole Miss in the first round.
Harvard is ranked 34th in the nation and has compiled a 19-7 record this spring. The Crimson boasts one ranked singles player in No. 34 Denis Nguyen, and a ranked doubles team in No. 26 Nguyen and Brian Yeung.
This weekend marks Harvard's 24th overall trip and fourth straight to the NCAA tournament. The Crimson is 16-23 in NCAA play, and went as far as the elite eight in 1997.
Last year, Harvard also traveled to Norman, Okla. for the first two tournament rounds. It defeated Auburn 4-1 in the first match, but fell 4-0 to Oklahoma in the second.
The `Cats and the Crimson are memorable foes with a history of tight, competitive matches. Northwestern took a close 4-3 victory on Feb. 8 of this year, and currently owns a narrow 6-5 all-time advantage.
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