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Nuggets to play McKendree in first round Monday
 May 7, 2008
NEW ORLEANS — The Xavier University of Louisiana women's tennis team will play McKendree in the opening round of the NAIA National Championship at 9 a.m. Monday at the Mobile (Ala.) Tennis Center.

The NAIA announced seedings and pairings for the 24-team event Wednesday.

The winner of that match will play fourth-seeded Vanguard at 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Xavier is 16-7 and ranked 13th in the final NAIA coaches poll and earned an at-large bid after reaching the semifinals of the Region XIII Tournament. McKendree, of Lebanon, Ill., is 9-5 and unranked but earned an at-large bid by winning the Region V Tournament.

Both teams have players in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's NAIA rankings of April 17. For Xavier, sophomore Anastesia Opata is 17th, and senior Dominique Bell is 26th in singles. Bell and Opata are ninth in doubles. McKendree sophomore Maria Occhipinti is 32nd in singles, and Occhipinti and junior Jenny Mennerick are 25th in doubles.

This will be the first meeting between the Gold Nuggets and the Bearcats. Xavier is 2-2 in the tournament after reaching the second round in 2004 and 2005.

Vanguard defeated Xavier 9-0 on Feb. 16 during the Nuggets' four-match California trip, but since then the Nuggets have won 14 of 18 matches.

Other teams on Xavier's half of the bracket include fifth-seeded Azusa Pacific and four-time defending champion Auburn Montgomery, the No. 1 seed. The Nuggets could meet Azusa, a 5-0 winner against Xavier on Feb. 15, in the quarterfinals. Xavier could play AUM, which is 2-0 this season against Xavier, in the semifinals.

 
 
Gulf Coast Athletic Conference
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics

The Xavier Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets compete in Division I of the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) as a member of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC). Xavier fields men's and women's teams in basketball, cross country and tennis.

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Southeast's Holloway signs with Xavier RYAN T. BOYD Southeast High point guard senior LaDaisha Holloway poses for a photograph with her parents Sam and Angela Reaves Tuesday. Holloway recently signed a scholarship to play at Xavier University in New Orleans. RYAN T. BOYD/rboyd@bradenton.comBy RYAN T. BOYD rboyd@bradenton.com BRADENTON --Since LaDaisha Holloway set foot on the Southeast High campus four years ago she's played against older, stronger girls. During the offseason, former Seminoles standouts Depree Bowden, Francine Houston and Casey Baker - to name a few - would return to Southeast to work out with the young Noles. Holloway, a point guard, had to battle against the more physically developed players. The work she put in has paid off. Two weeks ago, the senior visited Xavier University in New Orleans for a tryout, where she had to battle bigger, stronger players. This time she won. Last week, Holloway signed a letter of intent to play basketball for the Gold Nuggets. "Playing against the college players gave us a challenge at Southeast," Holloway said. "It helped me in New Orleans. When you play somebody better than you, it makes you better. The workout up there was easy, because I had played against college players down here." Holloway was discovered by the Gold Nuggets at a basketball scrimmage at Palmetto High. Xavier inherits a player that was a three-year starter, won four straight district titles and compiled a 67-23 record as a starter. Last season, Holloway averaged 5.5 points, 2.9 assists and 2.9 steals a game and helped the Noles to a 25-4 record and the Class 5A-District 12 title. "She never whined, cried or complained about anything," Southeast coach John Harder said. "She was all about winning. I liked her grit the most. She played hard and went on the floor every time. This scholarship is more than worthy." And the 5-foot-6 Holloway is headed to a stellar program. The Gold Nuggets, a NAIA school, finished 27-7 this season and won the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament. Xavier has won at least 20 games in seven straight seasons. "They work hard," Holloway said. "I saw that in their record. You have to do a lot more than you do in high school as far as running and drills and shooting. "I was truly overwhelmed when they told me they wanted me to play for them."