The Men's and Women's Tennis Committees recommended a common site for the Division I men's and women's tournaments beginning in 2006 during their annual meetings July 7-10 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

If the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet approves the recommendation in September, the championship format would include 16 teams per gender advancing to the finals.

As such, the Division I women's format would be: round of 16 on Thursday, quarterfinals on Friday, Saturday off, semifinals on Sunday and finals on Monday. The individual championships would begin Tuesday (singles first) and continue through the following Monday. The men's schedule would begin on Saturday with the round of 16, then semifinals on Monday and the team final on Tuesday. Individual championships would be conducted Wednesday through Monday.

If the common-site concept is approved, the committee will develop a detailed bid package with specific requirements and a rating system to evaluate sites. The committee will begin soliciting bids for 2006, 2007 and 2008 in October with a May 2004 deadline. In-person presentations would take place next summer.

In other actions, the Division I committee:

Requested a waiver from the Championships/Competition Cabinet to begin play before Sunday at noon at first- and second-round sites because of heat concerns at various sites.

Recommended modifying the current practice guaranteeing each regional a hosting opportunity. If the proposal is accepted, beginning in 2004, only regions with a No. 1 or No. 2 seed will be guaranteed a hosting opportunity. The committee believes the proposal is consistent with the cabinet's principles on seeding, pairings and site selection and the tennis coaches association preference allowing the higher-seeded teams the priority to host. The committee noted, however, that if a region has a No. 1 or No. 2 seed but neither submits a bid to host, that region would lose its host guarantee.

Discussed adding two new regions for the women's championship for a total of eight, but voted to remain at six. The committee also voted to realign the following institutions from the Southwest region to the Central region: University of Arkansas, Fayetteville; University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff; University of Arkansas, Little Rock; and Arkansas State University.

Realigned the following institutions for the men's championship: San Diego State University from the Mountain region to the West region; University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, from the South Central to the Central; Bradley University and Indiana State University from the Central to the Midwest; and Colorado from the Central to the Mountain.

Divisions II and III

The Division II committee discussed the current championship seeding process for the round of 16 and made no changes to the regional rotation. The committee had discussed the traditional seeding method widely used in tennis during a recent meeting with the International Tennis Association, but the group determined that the regional rotation system that allows each region to compete through a seven-year rotation process will remain in place for the upcoming season. The Division II regionalization philosophy also factored into the decision.

The Division II committee also voted to recommend an increase in officials' fees at regional competition and noted that bids are being accepted for the 2005 championships. Prospective hosts should contact Troy Arthur at the national office for more information.

The Division III committee is researching the possibility of a combined finals site. The committee hopes to find one facility with 24 courts for the men's and women's championships. A joint site, if supported, would not be implemented until 2006 or 2007, at the earliest. The committee will work with NCAA staff to evaluate the feasibility of the proposal.

The committee also requested a waiver to begin play before Sunday at noon at first- and second-round sites and at the finals site to deal with heat concerns and reduce the amount of missed classes.

In other Division III actions, the committee:

Recommended moving Hendrix College from the West to the Atlantic South region in both men's and women's tennis.

Proposed that all women's doubles teams play a minimum of 10 matches together for championships consideration.

Voted to change men's entry and rankings forms to match the women's in an effort to eliminate confusion. Forms will be available online soon.

Discussed, but did not recommend, increasing the men's squad size from seven to eight. The committee already has a process in place to take care of injuries between the first and second rounds and the quarterfinals. In the event of a documented injury or illness after the first and second rounds, a substitution request must be submitted to the games committee before arriving at the finals site.

Recommended Scott Thiekle from Kenyon College as the women's subcommittee chair.