FAMU tennis enters the NCAA Tournament ‘six strong,’ will face Georgia Bulldogs in regional
The Rattlers earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning this year’s Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.
Next, FAMU visits Athens, Georgia, to face the regional round host and top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs this weekend.
It’s the Rattlers’ second SWAC title and national tournament appearance in the last three seasons under longtime head coach Nikki Houston.
Hard work, determination, perseverance, fight. That’s what this team did,” Earl Wade, FAMU tennis’ assistant coach told the Tallahassee Democrat. “With them doing that, you see the fruit of all the hard work by winning the SWAC again.”
The Rattlers’ SWAC title win came a year after failing to repeat as champions when they lost to Alabama State in the 2024 championship round.
“I told the young ladies to remember this, keep your head up, and use this as your vehicle to get back,” Wade said. “We knew what we wanted and had something to prove.”
What made the Rattlers’ championship season so special is that they pulled it off with an abbreviated roster of six.
However, instead of the low numbers hampering the FAMU tennis team, it brought players closer together.
“This year has been very taxing because we only had six players,” Wade reflected on the season. “I call them ‘six strong.’ We’re family, depend on each other, and count on each other. It’s us against the world.”
One of the FAMU’s six players is Sara Rakim, named the SWAC’s Tennis Player of the Year. The Morocco native also earned SWAC Tournament Most Valuable Player honors.
Other All-SWAC selections include Reagan Harris, a first-teamer, and Susan Salinas, who made the second team.
“I’m focusing on bringing the energy, staying positive, and believing in us because I know we got talent and can have great results,” Rakim said.
Now, as a senior, playing at Georgia is all too familiar to Rakim. The Rattlers also played the Bulldogs in the 2023 national tournament, where Georgia topped FAMU 4-0.
Five of FAMU’s six players from the 2023 SWAC Championship team remain on the roster in 2025.
“I’m very excited because this is my last tournament as a college tennis player,” Rakim said. “My family wants to watch, and everybody’s excited for me to play.”
