Feb. 26, 2004

COLUMBIA, S.C. –

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No. 22 South Carolina men’s tennis steps away from regional action this weekend as they take on Francis Marion (11 a.m.) and Gardner-Webb (3 p.m.) at home in their last doubleheader of the regular season. USC will be vying to improve their record to 10-0, which would mark the best start for a Gamecock Tennis team since the 1984 season, when Carolina started off the season with a 13-0 mark before falling to Cal-Irvine in a 7-2 decision.

AGAINST FRANCIS MARION
Francis Marion is 4-1 entering Saturday’s match at Columbia … USC is 7-0 all-time against the Patriots … Six of those seven wins have come at home, one on the road in Florence.

AGAINST GARDNER-WEBB
Gardner-Webb is 1-7 entering this week’s play … GWU has one match this week before traveling to Columbia: A Wed., Feb. 26 match at home against Catawba … This is the first meeting between South Carolina and Gardner-Webb … A win over FMU and GWU would mark Carolina’s best start since 1984.

HEAD COACH Kent DeMars
Career Record: 517-272 (.655), 31 years
Record at USC: 303-201 (.601), 20 years
Entering his 20th year at the helm of the Carolina men’s tennis program, Head Coach Kent DeMars recently reached his 300th win as the Gamecock coach. This milestone was achieved on Feb. 15 when USC topped the Charlotte 49ers, 7-0, in a regional matchup in Columbia. Just last year, Coach DeMars notched his 500th career win as a collegiate head coach as Carolina upended No. 36 Mississippi State in Starkville on Feb. 28, 4-3.

At USC, DeMars has guided teams to 10 consecutive NCAA bids, 17 appearances in 19 seasons, and a No. 14 average national ranking. He has been named Region II Coach of the Year seven times in the past 16 seasons and was the 1989 NCAA Division I Coach of the Year.