Troy University Athletics
Photo by: Troy University
Trojans Arrive in Gainesville
5/12/2010 4:35:27 PM | Tennis (M)
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The 55th-ranked Troy University men's tennis team arrived in Gainesville Wednesday evening under the cloak of darkness to prepare for the NCAA Tournament, which begins on Saturday morning.
Troy (20-4) received a third seed in the Gainesville Region and is matched up against second-seeded Auburn (11-12). The two teams met earlier this season, with Auburn claiming a 5-2 victory over the Trojans. The two teams will meet again Saturday morning at 9 am (EST) at the Ring Tennis Center, on the University of Florida campus, in the opening round of the tournament.
However, before that could happen, the Trojans finished up their final practice of the year at the Lunsford Tennis Complex before climbing in the vans for the trip south. As the team began their travels, they received some big news just outside Tallahassee.
Although the team has achieved many firsts and received many awards, they received possibly one of the biggest awards they could receive on Wednesday afternoon.
Head coach Eric Hayes, who was recently named Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year, was awarded his second coaching award of the season. He was named the Wilson/ITA Southern Regional Coach of the Year Wednesday afternoon by the ITA. Hayes was one 13 coaches selected as a regional coach of the year, which automatically nominates him for the Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year.
Each coach around the country had to nominated by someone on staff at their university for the award, with the winner selected by the region chair. Hayes beat out coaches in the region from the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, the University of Alabama, Auburn University and UAB.
“This award shows the hard work put it by everyone associated with this team,” Hayes said. “I wish I could take the award and cut it half to give one half of it to my assistant Tyler (Faulkner). He has done so much to help with this program, things that people may not realize since we have two programs and have to split time between them. The guys are the ones who won this award, they are the ones who have to go out there and play. All I have to do is make sure they stay focused.”
Hayes led the Trojans to the most victories in school history this season, as well as winning their first Sun Belt Conference championship. He coached a pair of doubles players named All-Conference, as well as a singles player; while coaching the MVP of the conference tournament. During his off-time with the team, Hayes puts on free clinics for youth in the Troy community as well as volunteering his time to teach the game of tennis to anyone on campus.
Although Hayes is ecstatic about winning the award, he knows the task at hand will be tough on Saturday morning.
“Auburn is a good program,” Hayes said. “They are good this season, and they have all ready beaten us once in February. Auburn has good players, which is indicative of their record and their ranking in the individual rankings. We are going to have our hands full, we just have to keep the guys focused and ready to play.”
The team will have an early wake-up call on Thursday morning as they will prepare for the match with a 9 am (EST) practice at the Ring Tennis Center. That is the same time the match is on Saturday, which is important to get a schedule going according to Hayes.
“We just need to get them ready to play early,” Hayes said. “They have had time to relax since school has been out. We just need to get them on a routine before we
Troy (20-4) received a third seed in the Gainesville Region and is matched up against second-seeded Auburn (11-12). The two teams met earlier this season, with Auburn claiming a 5-2 victory over the Trojans. The two teams will meet again Saturday morning at 9 am (EST) at the Ring Tennis Center, on the University of Florida campus, in the opening round of the tournament.
However, before that could happen, the Trojans finished up their final practice of the year at the Lunsford Tennis Complex before climbing in the vans for the trip south. As the team began their travels, they received some big news just outside Tallahassee.
Although the team has achieved many firsts and received many awards, they received possibly one of the biggest awards they could receive on Wednesday afternoon.
Head coach Eric Hayes, who was recently named Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year, was awarded his second coaching award of the season. He was named the Wilson/ITA Southern Regional Coach of the Year Wednesday afternoon by the ITA. Hayes was one 13 coaches selected as a regional coach of the year, which automatically nominates him for the Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year.
Each coach around the country had to nominated by someone on staff at their university for the award, with the winner selected by the region chair. Hayes beat out coaches in the region from the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, the University of Alabama, Auburn University and UAB.
“This award shows the hard work put it by everyone associated with this team,” Hayes said. “I wish I could take the award and cut it half to give one half of it to my assistant Tyler (Faulkner). He has done so much to help with this program, things that people may not realize since we have two programs and have to split time between them. The guys are the ones who won this award, they are the ones who have to go out there and play. All I have to do is make sure they stay focused.”
Hayes led the Trojans to the most victories in school history this season, as well as winning their first Sun Belt Conference championship. He coached a pair of doubles players named All-Conference, as well as a singles player; while coaching the MVP of the conference tournament. During his off-time with the team, Hayes puts on free clinics for youth in the Troy community as well as volunteering his time to teach the game of tennis to anyone on campus.
Although Hayes is ecstatic about winning the award, he knows the task at hand will be tough on Saturday morning.
“Auburn is a good program,” Hayes said. “They are good this season, and they have all ready beaten us once in February. Auburn has good players, which is indicative of their record and their ranking in the individual rankings. We are going to have our hands full, we just have to keep the guys focused and ready to play.”
The team will have an early wake-up call on Thursday morning as they will prepare for the match with a 9 am (EST) practice at the Ring Tennis Center. That is the same time the match is on Saturday, which is important to get a schedule going according to Hayes.
“We just need to get them ready to play early,” Hayes said. “They have had time to relax since school has been out. We just need to get them on a routine before we
Skylar Meade, Blake Cavill & Zach Crotchfelt SBC Tournament Postgame - South Alabama
Thursday, May 21
Trojan Report - May 2026
Tuesday, May 19
Skylar Meade & Blake Cavill Postgame - ULM Game 3
Saturday, May 16
Skylar Meade Postgame - ULM Game 2
Saturday, May 16