North Carolina State University Athletics
Friday, May 3
Barksdale Stadium (Knoxville, Tenn.)
11 AM
NC State
vs
Middle Tennessee
Photo by: ACC
Wolfpack Set for NCAA Championships First-Round Matchup with Middle Tennessee
5/2/2019 12:04:00 PM | Men's Tennis
RALEIGH, N.C. – The No. 19 NC State men's tennis team (18-10) will kick off NCAA Men's Tennis Championships action on Friday morning as it takes on Middle Tennessee (18-11) in the first round of the team tournament. The match is set for an 11 a.m. start and will be played at Barksdale Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.
A win over the Blue Raiders on Friday would advance the Wolfpack to the second round, where it would face the winner of the match between Tennessee (the regional host) and Radford at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
WOLFPACK IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT:
The 2019 NCAA Championships berth marks NC State's 10th overall appearance and its second selection in as many seasons under the leadership of head coach Kyle Spencer. In 2018, Spencer became the first head coach in NC State men's tennis history to lead his team to an NCAA Championships selection in his first season.
The Wolfpack has advanced as far as the Elite Eight, which it reached in 2007. That year marked the only time in program history that NC State has moved past the first two rounds to reach the Sweet 16.
WOLFPACK IN THE RANKINGS:
NC State enters the NCAA Championships with a season-best No. 19 ranking as a team in the Oracle/ITA Division I rankings. NC State has been ranked in the top 25 for six weeks in a row and eight weeks in total on the year.
Alexis Galarneau maintained his No. 21 singles ranking. The Wolfpack junior has been ranked in the singles top 25 since March 5 and has not fallen outside of the top 45 this season.
Galarneau and Michael Ogden moved up two spots in the doubles rankings to check in at No. 44.
The final set of rankings for the 2018-19 season will be released upon the conclusion of the NCAA Championships. Final team rankings come out on May 22, and final individual rankings will be released on May 29.
PACK RISING:
The Pack continued to build on its success in 2019 as it put together a historic campaign in dual match play. The team took down seven nationally-ranked opponents on the way to amassing 18 wins heading into the NCAA Championships, the most in a single season since 2016 when it also won 18 matches.
NC State finished the regular season with an 8-4 record in ACC play, marking the most league wins in a single season in program history. The Wolfpack went on to kick off postseason competition by making history as the program's first-ever squad to advance to the ACC Championship semifinals.
GALARNEAU EARNS NCAA SINGLES BID:
For the second season in a row, Galarneau was selected to compete in the singles draw of the NCAA Men's Tennis Championships, making him the first Wolfpack player since at least 2000 to receive back-to-back singles bids.
The Laval, Canada native put together a solid season at the top singles spot, going 15-8 in dual match play and taking down seven ranked opponents. Galarneau became just the fourth player in program history to garner All-ACC status at least three times in his career as he was named a member of the First Team All-ACC for the second season in a row.
Galarneau received an at-large bid and will be a part of 64 singles players set to compete in the single-elimination tournament.
ACC ACCOLADES:
NC State saw two of its players earn recognition as All-ACC performers for the 2019 spring season as Galarneau and senior Igor Saveljic were honored. Galarneau was named First Team All-ACC and Saveljic was named to the Second Team All-ACC, as voted on by the conference's head coaches.
The award marked the first career All-ACC honors for Igor, who is in his final collegiate season.
The Pack has now had multiple all-conference honorees for seven seasons in a row.
SCOUTING THE BLUE RAIDERS:
Middle Tennessee earned the Conference USA's automatic bid into the field of 64 after winning the 2019 C-USA team title. The Blue Raiders will be making their 12th NCAA Championships appearance as they face the Pack on Friday.
UP NEXT:
Sixteen teams will advance out of regional action to compete in the Super Regionals on campus sites on May 11. From there, eight squads will move on to the final NCAA Championships site, with the last three rounds of the tournament set to be played May 16-19 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.
The singles and doubles championships will also be played in Orlando from May 20-25 following the conclusion of team competition.
#GoPack | @PackMensTennis
A win over the Blue Raiders on Friday would advance the Wolfpack to the second round, where it would face the winner of the match between Tennessee (the regional host) and Radford at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
WOLFPACK IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT:
The 2019 NCAA Championships berth marks NC State's 10th overall appearance and its second selection in as many seasons under the leadership of head coach Kyle Spencer. In 2018, Spencer became the first head coach in NC State men's tennis history to lead his team to an NCAA Championships selection in his first season.
The Wolfpack has advanced as far as the Elite Eight, which it reached in 2007. That year marked the only time in program history that NC State has moved past the first two rounds to reach the Sweet 16.
WOLFPACK IN THE RANKINGS:
NC State enters the NCAA Championships with a season-best No. 19 ranking as a team in the Oracle/ITA Division I rankings. NC State has been ranked in the top 25 for six weeks in a row and eight weeks in total on the year.
Alexis Galarneau maintained his No. 21 singles ranking. The Wolfpack junior has been ranked in the singles top 25 since March 5 and has not fallen outside of the top 45 this season.
Galarneau and Michael Ogden moved up two spots in the doubles rankings to check in at No. 44.
The final set of rankings for the 2018-19 season will be released upon the conclusion of the NCAA Championships. Final team rankings come out on May 22, and final individual rankings will be released on May 29.
PACK RISING:
The Pack continued to build on its success in 2019 as it put together a historic campaign in dual match play. The team took down seven nationally-ranked opponents on the way to amassing 18 wins heading into the NCAA Championships, the most in a single season since 2016 when it also won 18 matches.
NC State finished the regular season with an 8-4 record in ACC play, marking the most league wins in a single season in program history. The Wolfpack went on to kick off postseason competition by making history as the program's first-ever squad to advance to the ACC Championship semifinals.
GALARNEAU EARNS NCAA SINGLES BID:
For the second season in a row, Galarneau was selected to compete in the singles draw of the NCAA Men's Tennis Championships, making him the first Wolfpack player since at least 2000 to receive back-to-back singles bids.
The Laval, Canada native put together a solid season at the top singles spot, going 15-8 in dual match play and taking down seven ranked opponents. Galarneau became just the fourth player in program history to garner All-ACC status at least three times in his career as he was named a member of the First Team All-ACC for the second season in a row.
Galarneau received an at-large bid and will be a part of 64 singles players set to compete in the single-elimination tournament.
ACC ACCOLADES:
NC State saw two of its players earn recognition as All-ACC performers for the 2019 spring season as Galarneau and senior Igor Saveljic were honored. Galarneau was named First Team All-ACC and Saveljic was named to the Second Team All-ACC, as voted on by the conference's head coaches.
The award marked the first career All-ACC honors for Igor, who is in his final collegiate season.
The Pack has now had multiple all-conference honorees for seven seasons in a row.
SCOUTING THE BLUE RAIDERS:
Middle Tennessee earned the Conference USA's automatic bid into the field of 64 after winning the 2019 C-USA team title. The Blue Raiders will be making their 12th NCAA Championships appearance as they face the Pack on Friday.
UP NEXT:
Sixteen teams will advance out of regional action to compete in the Super Regionals on campus sites on May 11. From there, eight squads will move on to the final NCAA Championships site, with the last three rounds of the tournament set to be played May 16-19 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.
The singles and doubles championships will also be played in Orlando from May 20-25 following the conclusion of team competition.
#GoPack | @PackMensTennis
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