Flames to Open ITA Kickoff Weekend Against Michigan State, Have Opportunity to Face Defending Champion TCU
6/12/2024 4:33:00 PM | Men's Tennis
LYNCHBURG, Va. – After receiving an invitation to compete at the ITA Kickoff Weekend in January, the No. 3 seed Liberty Flames have been selected into a four-team bracket to face off with host No. 1 seed and defending NCAA Men's Tennis National Champion TCU, along with No. 2 seed Michigan State and No. 4 seed Pacific.
The Flames will travel to Fort Worth, Texas at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Jan. 2025 in the early stage of their spring season. Liberty will open the weekend against No. 2 seed and No. 23 Michigan State.
"It's an awesome opportunity for our team to represent Liberty at ITA National Indoor Kickoff Weekend," said Liberty sixth-year head coach Derek Schwandt. "We are excited to prepare for this starting with our summer tournaments."
The ITA Kickoff Weekend consists of 15 host sites, with four teams competing at each site. The victors of the two matches on Jan. 25 in each draw will meet in the championship match on Jan. 26, while the other two squads will battle in a consolation contest. The winner at each site will advance to the 50th Annual ITA Division I Men's Team Indoor Championship, held Feb. 17-20 at SMU in Dallas, Texas and Baylor in Waco, Texas. The Mustangs and Bears will automatically be in the 16-team field as the host site schools.
Liberty is set to compete in the prestigious event for the fourth time in program history, all in the previous five seasons. The Flames competed in the ITA Kickoff Weekend in three consecutive seasons from 2020-22. Liberty seeks its first triumph following six opportunities at this year's event. In its most recent outing in 2022, the Flames faced off with host No. 1 seed Kentucky and No. 3 seed Washington, falling in both matches.
The Flames have most recently met Michigan State in 2023, topping the Spartans 4-1 at the Diablos College Invite. It was the first all-time meeting between the two programs.
No strangers to playing the defending NCAA defending champion, Liberty has the opportunity to face off with another reigning champion in TCU. The No. 4 Horned Frogs topped No. 2 seed Texas 4-3 on May 19 to claim the 2024 national title.
The Flames have met the defending NCAA champion the past two seasons, with both meetings coming against Virginia in 2022 and 2023.
The Flames could also have an opportunity to meet the team that put an end to their 2024 season. Liberty fell to Pacific 4-2 in the semifinal round of the 2024 UTR Sports NIT Championship. The Tigers were ultimately ousted 4-1 by Tulsa in the NIT Championship final.
Liberty looks to improve on a 2024 spring season in which the team achieved a high ranking of No. 45 in the ITA team rankings. The spring season concluded with a second-place finish in the 2024 CUSA Men's Tennis Championship and a semifinal run at the 2024 UTR Sports NIT Championships.
The Flames will travel to Fort Worth, Texas at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Jan. 2025 in the early stage of their spring season. Liberty will open the weekend against No. 2 seed and No. 23 Michigan State.
We'll be Ready ????
— Liberty Men's Tennis (@LibertyMTennis) June 12, 2024
More details here https://t.co/5E7bMtW0aJ pic.twitter.com/SIyaE6n8QO
"It's an awesome opportunity for our team to represent Liberty at ITA National Indoor Kickoff Weekend," said Liberty sixth-year head coach Derek Schwandt. "We are excited to prepare for this starting with our summer tournaments."
The ITA Kickoff Weekend consists of 15 host sites, with four teams competing at each site. The victors of the two matches on Jan. 25 in each draw will meet in the championship match on Jan. 26, while the other two squads will battle in a consolation contest. The winner at each site will advance to the 50th Annual ITA Division I Men's Team Indoor Championship, held Feb. 17-20 at SMU in Dallas, Texas and Baylor in Waco, Texas. The Mustangs and Bears will automatically be in the 16-team field as the host site schools.
Liberty is set to compete in the prestigious event for the fourth time in program history, all in the previous five seasons. The Flames competed in the ITA Kickoff Weekend in three consecutive seasons from 2020-22. Liberty seeks its first triumph following six opportunities at this year's event. In its most recent outing in 2022, the Flames faced off with host No. 1 seed Kentucky and No. 3 seed Washington, falling in both matches.
The Flames have most recently met Michigan State in 2023, topping the Spartans 4-1 at the Diablos College Invite. It was the first all-time meeting between the two programs.
No strangers to playing the defending NCAA defending champion, Liberty has the opportunity to face off with another reigning champion in TCU. The No. 4 Horned Frogs topped No. 2 seed Texas 4-3 on May 19 to claim the 2024 national title.
The Flames have met the defending NCAA champion the past two seasons, with both meetings coming against Virginia in 2022 and 2023.
The Flames could also have an opportunity to meet the team that put an end to their 2024 season. Liberty fell to Pacific 4-2 in the semifinal round of the 2024 UTR Sports NIT Championship. The Tigers were ultimately ousted 4-1 by Tulsa in the NIT Championship final.
Liberty looks to improve on a 2024 spring season in which the team achieved a high ranking of No. 45 in the ITA team rankings. The spring season concluded with a second-place finish in the 2024 CUSA Men's Tennis Championship and a semifinal run at the 2024 UTR Sports NIT Championships.
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