FAMU tennis headed to New Orleans to recapture SWAC Tournament championship trophy
The Florida A&M tennis team is headed somewhere that has become all too familiar.
The Rattlers are headed to this weekend's Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament, played at New Orleans' City Park Tennis Center.
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FAMU (9-10, 7-2 in SWAC) enters the eight-team SWAC Tournament bracket as a three-seed and will match up against Southern (4-12, 4-5 in SWAC) in the first round. The first serve begins on Friday at 2 p.m. Eastern Time.
Florida A&M head tennis coach and director of tennis Nikki Houston looks on during the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament at the City Park Tennis Center in New Orleans.
When FAMU and Southern played during the regular season, the Rattlers came out on top with a 4-1 victory.
'The girls are confident that we can come out and play well this weekend,' FAMU tennis head coach Nikki Houston told the Tallahassee Democrat. 'We got Southern in the first round and are looking forward to playing them again.'
The SWAC Tournament match is set for Sunday at 11 a.m.
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If FAMU reaches the title match, it will be the program's third consecutive year competing for the SWAC Championship.
In 2023, the Rattlers defeated Jackson State in the SWAC championship. Last year, FAMU lost to Alabama State in the SWAC Tournament's championship match.
Florida A&M's Reagan Harris participates in a match at the Althea Gibson Tennis Complex.
Five of FAMU's six-woman roster remain from the Rattlers' SWAC Championship team. FAMU has four seniors and two juniors.
'We got a veteran team,' Houston explained. 'Everybody has been to the championship, the expectations, and the focus we have to go in with.'
The SWAC tennis title may run through Jackson State and the defending champions Alabama State. Jackson State is the No. 1 seed, with Alabama State at No. 2.
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Those were the only SWAC teams FAMU lost to during the regular season.
'Even though we didn't fan out the regular season like we wanted to, we were in those matches,' Houston said. 'It prepared us for the championship this year.'
Florida A&M tennis player Sara Rakim participates in a match at the Althea Gibson Tennis Complex in Tallahassee, Florida
FAMU winning the SWAC title would be its second in the last three years. Houston helped the Rattlers win the 1997 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title.
'It would be great and add to the legacy of FAMU tennis and athletics,' Houston said when asked about what winning the SWAC title would mean.
'We come in to graduate and get a ring. So, that's what we're trying to do.'
Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.
Follow his award-winning coverage on RattlerNews.com and contact him via email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU tennis aiming for 2nd SWAC title in last 3 years this weekend
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