The Gophers women’s tennis team has earned a spot in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2003. The NCAA released the tournament’s 64-team bracket Tuesday.
Minnesota will play Arizona in the first round May 11 in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Wildcats finished 15-8 overall and 5-5 in the Pac-12 and were most recently ranked 27th in the nation.
The Gophers, who were ranked 34th, finished 16-8 with a 5-6 Big Ten record. They were swept by Illinois — a team Arizona swept in February — in the second round of the Big Ten tournament.
Minnesota would play the winner of North Carolina-Richmond in the second round. The Tar Heels received the seventh overall seed in the NCAA tournament and are 22-5 this season.
Men also receive bid
The men’s tennis team earned its fourth consecutive bid to the NCAA tournament and will play Tulsa on May 11 in Norman, Okla., in the first round.
The No. 23 Golden Hurricanes defeated No. 33 Memphis two weekends ago to win their sixth Conference USA championship. They finished 18-8 overall and did not lose a conference match.
Minnesota finished 13-6 in the regular season (8-3 Big Ten), but it lost in the second round of its conference tournament to Indiana.