April 19, 2003

MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The University of Memphis men's tennis team (16-9) finished its 2003 season with a victory after the University of Charlotte defaulted all of its matches in the fifth-place match on the final day of the Conference USA men's tennis championship, Saturday, due to travel arrangements.

The Tigers will now watch to see if they are included in the field of 64 for the NCAA Men's Tennis Championships, but Memphis has fallen to No. 69 in the country in recent weeks and is not assured a spot in the tournament field.

With its third straight Conference USA Championship, Tulane University has grabbed the league's automatic berth into the championships. TCU, Louisville and South Florida all rank above the Tigers in the national ranking and finished above Memphis in the league tournament.

The NCAA tournament will begin May 10-11 with host sites to be determined. The Memphis men's tennis team has never qualified a team for the tournament.