Princeton University Athletics
Blue Gray Up Next for Tennis Teams in Alabama
February 24, 2016 | Men's Tennis, Women's Tennis
Both Princeton tennis teams will head to the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic this weekend in Montgomery, Ala. with matches scheduled for Friday and Saturday at the Lagoon Park and O'Connor Tennis Centers.
Both the men's and women's fields include five ITA-ranked teams among the six, with No. 9 Oklahoma State the leader on the men's side and No. 10 Pepperdine the top team on the women's side in the Feb. 23 rankings, the first week this season the ITA used computer rankings rather than votes.
"We are excited for the Blue Gray tournament this weekend," Princeton women's coach Laura Granville said. "There are a number of top-20 teams at the event, so it gives us an opportunity to test ourselves against some of the best teams in the country. Also, it is great to get a few more outdoor matches this time of year."
Princeton's men, who are ranked 52nd in the nation and are coming off a 4-3 defeat at current No. 30 Rice last weekend, will open with No. 48 Auburn Friday at 4 p.m. ET. The women, who had last weekend away from competition, will open with No. 28 Alabama at 11 a.m. ET Friday in a rematch of their 2014 NCAA second round contest that Alabama won 4-2.
"The Blue Gray is a historical and prestigious national event and one we are fortunate to participate in for the third year in a row," Princeton men's coach Billy Pate said. "The hospitality of the Blue Gray committee, as well as the warmth from local supporters and housing for the players, is unrivaled. This year the field was trimmed to six teams to better accommodate playing dates, particularly for the SEC host universities. It's an elite group of teams on both the men's and women's side so we'll need to be at our best this weekend.
"We have a tough assignment in going up against one of the local favorites with Auburn first round on Friday. However, after and playing a close match at Rice last weekend, our guys are eager to getting back outdoors and making the necessary adjustments."
From there, the winners of the three first-round matches on each side will advance to the semifinals, along with the best-performing team that lost in the first round, while the two remaining teams that lost in the first round will play a consolation match. The teams that win their semifinal matches will play an exhibition doubles contest Saturday at 6 p.m. ET for the tournament title, but that match won't count in the team's win-loss record.
Men's
| Teams listed in ITA ranking order |  Oklahoma State |
 South Florida |
 Auburn |
 Princeton |
 Boise State |
 Alabama |
| Match Details | Possible Saturday opponent | Possible Saturday opponent | Friday, 4 p.m. ET | Two matches, Fri.-Sat. | Possible Saturday opponent | Possible Saturday opponent |
| Record | 9-1 | 6-3 | 7-2 | 8-3 | 7-5 | 3-3 |
| ITA Team Ranking (Feb. 23) |
9 | 14 | 48 | 52 | 67 | NR |
| ITA Individual Rankings (Feb. 23) |
(75) Julian Cash (91) Jurence Mendoza (109) Arjun Kadhe (115) Temur Ismailov (123) Tristan Meraut (15) Cash/Kadhe |
(5) Roberto Cid (35) Dominic Cotrone (46) Cotrone/Roberts |
(52) Marko Krickovic/Edward Nguyen | (108) Alex Day | None | (93) Mazen Osama (118) Korey Lovett (121) Becker O'Shaughnessy |
| Last Meeting vs. Princeton | None | 2015, 4-0 South Florida at Blue Gray | 1990, 7-2 Auburn at UC Irvine | -- | None | 2014, 4-0 Alabama at Blue Gray |
| Streak vs. Princeton | None | South Florida, 2 | Auburn, 1 | -- | None | Alabama, 3 |
Women's
| Teams listed in ITA ranking order |  Pepperdine |
Oklahoma State |
Alabama |
 Texas |
Auburn |
Princeton |
| Match Details | Possible Saturday opponent | Possible Saturday opponent | Friday, 11 a.m. ET | Possible Saturday opponent | Possible Saturday opponent | Two matches, Fri.-Sat. |
| Record | 5-1 | 9-2 | 3-3 | 3-3 | 11-1 | 5-4 |
| ITA Team Ranking (Feb. 23) |
10 | 11 | 28 | 58 | 61 | NR |
| ITA Individual Rankings (Feb. 23) |
(4) Luisa Stefani (114) Dzina Milovanovic (12) Matea Cutura/Christine Maddox (22) Stefani/Apichaya Runglerdkriangkrai |
(29) Vladica Babic (33) Katarina Adamovic (47) Viktoriya Lushkova (29) Maria Alvarez/Kelsey Laurente (33) Lushkova/Carla Tur Mari (39) Adamovic/Babic |
(38) Andie Daniell (20) Daniell/Erin Routliffe |
(9) Breaunna Addison (26) Addison/Danielle Wagland |
(32) Andie Dikosavljevic (36) Pleun Burgmans/Paula de Man |
None |
| Last Meeting vs. Princeton | 2007, 6-1 Pepperdine at Pepperdine | 2015, 6-1 Oklahoma State in San Diego, Calif. | 2014, 4-2 Alabama at Alabama | 2011, 6-1 Texas at Florida State | 1981, 5-4 Princeton at Clemson | -- |
| Streak vs. Princeton | Pepperdine, 7 | Oklahoma State, 2 | Alabama, 1 | Texas, 2 | Princeton, 1 | -- |