Men’s Tennis Slotted Fifth in USA South Preseason Poll

Posted: Feb 01, 2023

BREVARD, N.C. – Seeking consecutive postseason berths for just the second time in program history, the Brevard College men's tennis team was picked to finish in fifth place in the annual USA South Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Head coaches do not vote for their own teams in the balloting.

Looking to capture a USA South regular season crown and the tournament title for the 14th straight year, N.C. Wesleyan was placed atop the rankings thanks to receiving 49 total points and seven of the possible eight first-place votes. The Battling Bishops finished last season with an unblemished 7-0 Conference record which extended their regular season winning streak against League opponents to 103 matches. Southern Virginia, which fell to N.C. Wesleyan in last year's USA South tournament semifinals, was second in the poll with 40 points and the final first-place vote while Methodist rounded out the top three with 39 points.

N.C. Wesleyan is picked to capture the USA South title for the 12th consecutive year and they've come through each of those times. Since the Conference's first men's tennis preseason poll in 2003, the team chosen first has won the Conference championship 13 out of 19 years. In the six years in which the preseason favorites did not win the league title, the eventual winners were chosen as the second-place team by the coaches in that particular year's preseason poll.

Pfeiffer University finished just ahead of the Tornados with 30 points for fourth place. BC earned 27 points for fifth, while the poll was rounded out by Mary Baldwin University (sixth, 16 points), William Peace University (seventh, 14 points), and Greensboro College (eighth, nine points).

2023 USA South Men's Tennis Coaches Preseason Poll
Rank	Institution (1st Place Votes)	Points
1.	N.C. Wesleyan# (7)	49
2.	Southern Virginia (1)	40
3.	Methodist	39
4.	Pfeiffer	30
5.	Brevard	27
6.	Mary Baldwin	16
7.	William Peace	14
8.	Greensboro	9
#Defending Regular Season & Tournament Champion

Brevard is coming off the program's first conference postseason appearance since the 2010-11 campaign, and the Tornados will look to build off of last year's success in conference play returning most of its key contributors from last season – highlighted by 2022 USA South Men's Tennis West Division First Team honoree Ethan McGee.

The 2023 USA South Men's Tennis Tournament will once again be conducted exclusively on campus sites. The top-six seeded teams will advance to postseason play which will begin with first-round action on Tuesday or Wednesday, April 25 or 26. The semifinals and finals will take place on the campus of N.C. Wesleyan on Friday-Saturday, April 28-29.

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-BC-