HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (March 12, 2024) – The University of North Alabama men's tennis team kicks off its three-dual week on the road Wednesday, taking on the Alabama A&M Bulldogs in Huntsville, Ala.
The dual serves as the first of five-straight matches away from Florence, with UNA set to face the Bulldogs and Atlantic Sun Conference foes Stetson and FGCU later this week. The Lions will continue the road trip on March 22 and 24 against Kennesaw State and North Florida, respectively, before returning the UNA Tennis Complex.
North Alabama returns to court after a week-long break, last facing Mississippi Valley State at home March 4. UNA was able to get their eighth win of the year in the 5-2 victory, with every court won by a 6-0 final score.
Freshman Birtan Duran also earned ASUN Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week honors on March 6, finishing a strong week unbeaten in duals against Jacksonville State on March 2 and Mississippi Valley State. Duran is currently on a nine-match winning streak in singles play. This was the fourth weekly award for the program this season.
Winners of eight of their last nine, the Lions look to stay hot in non-conference play while gaining momentum heading to Stetson and FGCU.
Live stats will be provided for North Alabama's duals against Stetson and FGCU, with full results and a recap will be posted on RoarLions.com following all three duals. Fans can also follow along on the UNA Tennis social media pages.
MATCH 1
North Alabama at Alabama A&M
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
1 p.m.
MATCH 2
North Alabama at Stetson
Saturday, March 15, 2024
1 p.m.
Live Stats
MATCH 3
North Alabama at FGCU
Saturday, March 17, 2024
11 a.m.
Live Stats
SCOUTING THE LIONS: North Alabama heads into the week with a 8-4 record, looking to potentially break the program record for wins in a Division I season by the week's end. The Lions are quickly racking up the weekly awards after Duran's first ASUN honor, continuing to add on to their already-program record tally of four this season. UNA is 34-31 in singles matches for a 52.3 percent win percentage, but their calling card is the doubles category with the team 19-8 in such matches. Junior Nazar Fedoryshyn and sophomore Lachlan Brain are tied for the team lead with eight doubles wins, with each player winning at least two doubles matches.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS: Alabama A&M hosts the Lions in the Wednesday matchup, coming into the dual with a 4-5 record. The Bulldog sride a three-match win streak with wins against Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M and Alcorn State. Alabama A&M has won 13 singles matches and eight doubles matches, led by Yin Chih Lan and Chetanna Amadike in the doubles portion (4) and Arnav Pathange in singles (5). The head coach for Alabama A&M is Willis Mbandi.
SERIES HISTORY: The Lions and Bulldogs are meeting for the 31st time in men's tennis. North Alabama leads the all-time series, 29-1. North Alabama has won two straight against the Bulldogs the last two seasons. Alabama A&M's first and only win over UNA came on March 19, 2019, narrowly defeating the Lions from the UNA Tennis Complex, 4-3.
SCOUTING THE HATTERS: Stetson will take on North Alabama in the third-ever meeting between the teams and first ASUN Conference matchup of the season. The Hatters are 10-2 on the year, having won their previous nine duals after dropping two of their first three contests. Stetson has been consistent on the season with a 66.7 percent win percentage in both their singles and doubles matches. Leading the Hatters at the helm is Christophe Noblet.
SERIES HISTORY: Stetson leads the series 2-0. Both meetings have come in the Division I era for North Alabama, with the Hatters victorious in 2019 and 2022.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES: The third dual of the week comes pits the FGCU Eagles against the Lions for the second ASUN contest for both teams. The Eagles' current record stands at 3-6, with their last outing resulting in a 4-2 win over UNC Asheville on March 11. FGCU has won two of the last three duals with the Eagles also picking up a 4-3 victory over Toledo on Feb. 29. The Eagles have 15 singles wins and 12 doubles victories, but FGCU has the higher win percentage in the doubles category (48 percent to 31.3 percent in singles). Hugo Magnussen and Eric Oncins leads FGCU with seven wins as the top flight pair, and Philipp Bosse and Mika Bunjes have a team-high three wins in singles competition. FGCU's interim head coach is Mateo Ruiz.
SERIES HISTORY: This will mark only the third meeting between the Lions and Eagles. FGCU won both meetings in 2019 and 2022.
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