April 9, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Men's Tennis Weekly Release in PDF Format
SDSU MEN'S TENNIS WRAPS UP REGULAR SEASON WITH THREE MWC MATCHES THIS WEEKEND
* In its final weekend of the regular season, the 54th-ranked San Diego State men's tennis team hits the road once again to face three Mountain West Conference rivals on successive days, April 10-12, in Provo, Utah. The Aztecs will square off against Brigham Young on Thursday starting at 1:30 p.m. MDT, followed by a Friday showdown with No. 34 TCU beginning at 10 a.m. MDT. SDSU then wraps up league play on Saturday when it locks horns with UNLV at the same morning start time. All three matches will be contested at the BYU Tennis Complex.
After opening their first round of MWC action last Friday with a 7-0 whitewash of Air Force, the Aztecs (12-8, 1-2 MWC) ended the weekend on a disappointing note, suffering back-to-back losses to Utah and then-No. 54 New Mexico by identical 5-2 margins. The following day against the Utes, SDSU held a 2-1 lead in singles play and won the first set in the remaining three matches. However, Utah escaped the Aztecs' clutches to pull away for the victory. On Sunday against the Lobos, the Aztecs secured the early doubles point, but were unable to duplicate that success in singles competition as New Mexico captured five of six matches to register the win.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
* Brigham Young (13-9, 1-2 MWC) broke a three-match losing streak recently with a 7-0 blanking of Air Force on March 29. Much like SDSU, the Cougars sport a youthful roster consisting of six freshmen, one sophomore and one senior. Rookies Daniel Hwang and Evan Urbina have been the top winners for BYU in 2008, with both players earning 14 victories in dual-match competition. Hwang has also combined with another freshman, Thomas Schubert, to post nine wins in doubles play this spring.
At the controls for Brigham Young is fifth-year boss Brad Pearce, who reached the singles quarterfinals at Wimbledon in 1990 where he lost to the top-ranked player in the world at the time, Ivan Lendl. Pearce has also made quarterfinal appearances in doubles at the Australian and U.S. Open championships.
SERIES HISTORY VS. BRIGHAM YOUNG
* The Aztecs have more victories over the Cougars than any other program dating back to 1989, maintaining a 21-8 lead in the series during that span. However, BYU dashed San Diego State's postseason hopes last season when it posted a 4-3 upset of the Scarlet and Black in the semifinals of the MWC tournament. The top-seeded Aztecs captured the early doubles point and led 2-1 in singles play before the Cougars rallied for the hard-fought win.
SCOUTING THE HORNED FROGS
* TCU (16-5, 3-0), ranked 34th in the latest ITA team poll, has won six of seven, including a three-match sweep in its first weekend of MWC action, March 27-29, in Las Vegas. The Horned Frogs outscored Air Force, Brigham Young and UNLV by a combined 18-3 margin. Leading the TCU charge is senior Cosmin Cotet, who has earned a No. 35 national singles ranking on the strength of a 20-7 overall record and a 16-5 mark in dual-match competition at the top of the Frogs' lineup. Junior Kriegler Brink and freshman Zach Nichols have also been impressive, combining for 53 victories on the year.
Second-year head coach Dave Borelli recently earned his 400th collegiate victory in TCU's 5-2 win at UNLV on March 29. Borelli captured seven national championships, three runner-up finishes and 10 conference titles while coaching the USC women's squad from 1976-1988.
SERIES HISTORY VS. TCU
* Although the series is just three matches old, each encounter has been a struggle, with the Aztecs holding a slim 2-1 advantage. In 2006, SDSU clinched the regular-season MWC title with a 4-3 upset of the Frogs in Salt Lake City. Two weeks later, however, TCU turned the tables on the Scarlet and Black with a 4-1 triumph in the MWC semifinals at Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego. Last season, the Aztecs once again edged the Frogs by a 4-3 count, which was SDSU's seventh victory in a season-high 10-match winning streak.
SCOUTING THE REBELS
* UNLV (9-9, 2-1 MWC) took a break from league action last weekend when it posted a 5-2 road victory over then-No. 66 UC Irvine on April 5. Prior to that contest, the Rebels took two of three during their first round of MWC matches, March 27-29, at home. UNLV knocked off Brigham Young (4-3) and Air Force (7-0) before falling to TCU by a 5-2 count. Individually, the Rebels boast the 85th-ranked singles player in junior Elliot Wronski, who has compiled a 15-10 record this season, including an 11-6 mark in dual matches at the No.1 position. Rounding out the top of the UNLV singles ladder are sophomore Luca Barlocchi and junior Wesley Burrows, who have combined for 21 victories in dual-match competition.
At the controls for the Rebels is fifth-year head coach Owen Hambrook, who led UNLV to its first-ever MWC championship in 2007 en route to earning ITA Mountain Region coach of the year honors.
SERIES HISTORY VS. UNLV
* The Aztecs hold a 14-6 lead in the all-time series dating back to 1989. SDSU has won five straight meetings between the two schools, including a 6-1 triumph in the MWC opener last season at Aztec Tennis Center. After dropping a hotly contested doubles point, the Scarlet and Black made things look easy in singles play, sweeping all six matches to win going away. The Rebels' last victory against the Aztecs came in 2004 when UNLV pulled off a dramatic 4-3 stunner after overcoming a 3-1 deficit in Las Vegas.
LOOKING AHEAD
* Following this weekend's slate, SDSU will have two weeks off to prepare for the MWC Championships, April 24-26, on the campus of TCU in Fort Worth, Texas. The Aztecs have captured three tournament titles since the league's inception in 1999, winning in 2002, 2003 and 2005.
NEUTRAL-COURT SUCCESS
* The Aztecs are 38-16 (.704 percent) in neutral-site matches since 2002, including a 4-2 mark this season. SDSU opened the 2008 campaign with a 7-0 blanking of UC Riverside at Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Jan. 20, followed by a 5-2 victory over Minnesota, in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 16. The Scarlet and Black also dusted off Idaho, 7-0, at Boise State's home venue on March 7, before dropping a 4-3 heartbreaker to Harvard in Santa Barbara on March 29. Last weekend in Albuquerque, N.M., SDSU split its neutral-site encounters against a pair of MWC foes, shutting out Air Force, 7-0, before suffering a 5-2 upset at the hands of Utah. Since 1989, the Aztecs have only had three seasons (1994, 1997, 2001) in which they posted a losing record on neutral courts.
YOUTH SHALL BE SERVED IN `08
* After losing four seniors off its 2007 roster, including Mountain West Conference player of the year Markus Dickhardt and all-MWC performer Christian Groh, San Diego State has taken on a decidedly youthful appearance this season. The Aztecs possess just one junior on this year's squad to go along with five sophomores and four freshmen (one redshirt). While growing pains are to be expected, success has not eluded this youthful bunch either. After garnering MWC freshman of the year honors in 2007, Achim Ceban teamed with Bartosz Golas to capture the doubles crown at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic in January at Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Ceban also reached the singles final at the NCTC, while Golas was named MWC player of week for his efforts in both the tournament and the season opener against UC Riverside.
NEW STARS ON THE HORIZON
* Freshman Andre Feliz is enjoying a tremendous rookie campaign thus far in 2008, leading the Scarlet and Black with 15 overall singles victories, including 13 in dual matches. Fellow classmate Danny Heidecker has also come on strong of late, winning seven in a row and 11 of 12 to raise his overall record to 14-6 and 12-4 in duals. Another freshman, Tim Schulz van Endert, has also been hot in doubles action, posting an 11-4 record this spring while playing alongside sophomores Achim Ceban and Jordan Colman. Colman, meanwhile, was triumphant in his first-ever Division I singles match on March 7, when he knocked off Idaho's Andrew Hobbs, 6-3, 6-3. The transfer from Cabrillo College has also won his last three doubles matches at the No. 3 spot, teaming with Ceban and Schulz van Endert.
MATAN MAKES HIS MOVE
* After playing the first third of the season primarily in the No. 4 position, sophomore Matan Shitrit has become entrenched at the top of the Aztecs' singles ladder, alternating between the first two spots after defeating Stanislav Glukhov of Idaho at No. 2 on March 7. Since that match, Shitrit owns an 8-4 record, including a 7-1 mark in the second slot.
CARSWELL IN CHARGE
* Gene Carswell is in his 10th season at San Diego State and fifth as head coach of the Scarlet and Black. In four-plus seasons at the helm, the Aztecs' mentor has guided SDSU to three straight Mountain West Conference regular-season titles, while compiling an overall record of 71-39 (.645) in the process. In each of the past three years, the native San Diegan has taken home MWC coach of the year accolades, leading San Diego State to a 17-0 league mark during that stretch. Prior to his present duties, Carswell was an Aztec assistant for five years from 1998-2003, earning a pair of ITA regional assistant coach of the year honors in 2001 and 2003.