Wednesday, November 05, 2008

(November 5, 2008) - After winning against some of the top players and teams in the nation this fall season, ETSU men's tennis senior Enrique Olivares (Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela) will look to continue that trend once more, as the No. 31st ranked senior captain takes on the majority of top-32 players in the nation at the ITA National Indoor Championships, in Charlottesville, Va.

The four-day event will take place at the Boar's Sports Club, hosted by the University of Virginia. Play will open with first-round singles action Thursday, followed by the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals round each of the following days. Notable players in this year's elite field include nine players that are currently ranked in the ITA top-10, as well as five top-five partipants and last year's NCAA singles runner-up J.P. Smith, who Olivares defeated earlier this fall. 

Olivares becomes just the second ETSU men's tennis player since 1992 to qualify for ITA National Indoors, after he reached the semifinals of the D'Novo/ITA All-American Championships in October.

"Enrique has continued to play outstanding tennis this fall," said head coach Yaser Zaatini. "He has been such an outstanding player for our team throughout this season, but more importantly Enrique has been a player and student-athlete that represent ETSU in such a great manner. He's someone that the school and community can be proud of both on and off the court."

Olivares will take the court at 10 a.m., Thursday, with pairings and draws being released to the public late Wednesday afternoon. Below is the listed participants and their ITA national rankings.

 Live stats and updates will be available for the tournament at www.ETSUBUCS.com or www.virginiasports.com.