May 6, 2004

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.-- Wake Forest's Derrick Spice was one of 64 individuals selected to compete at the 2004 NCAA Men's Tennis Singles Championships, the NCAA announced Thursday. The junior from North Olmsted, Ohio will represent the Demon Deacons from May 26-31 at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Spice received All-ACC honors for the second time in his career in 2004, and was twice named ACC Player of the Week during the season. This marks the first appearance in the NCAA Singles Championship for Wake Forest's 2002 ACC Freshman of the Year. Spice received that honor as a freshman when he notched 36 singles victories, the most wins ever by a Wake Forest player in a single season. In Wake's 2004 dual matches, Spice has played No. 1 singles all season, racking up eight wins, including five against opponents ranked higher than him. Spice enters the NCAA Singles Championship as the nation's 57th ranked player.

The last Demon Deacon to compete at the NCAA Singles Championship was David Loewenthal. Loewenthal was selected as an alternate in 2003 and took the nation's eighth-ranked player, Georgia's David Martin, to three-sets before falling 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Wake Forest will take on Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA Team Championship on May 14 in Charlottesville, Va.