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Weekly Tennis Notes.pdf
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PLAYER OF THE WEEK - SMU's Gwinyai Chingoka, a sophomore from Harare, Zimbabwe, went 3-1 from his No. 1 singles spot and 3-0 in doubles. In his three wins, he lost only one set. His only loss came to 29th-ranked Richard Barker of Rice. Chingoka enters this weeks WAC Championship winning six of his last seven matches.
OTHERS NOMINATED - Alex Krohn, Fresno State and Dustin Taylor, Tulsa
2003 WAC TOURNAMENT The 2003 WAC Tournament begins April 25, with the championship match on Sunday, April 27. This years tournament will be played at the Appleton Tennis Courts on the campus of Boise State. The 2002 champion SMU Mustangs will look to defend their title, but Rice heads into the tournament with the most wins.
AROUND THE WACBoise State - The Broncos are led by returning all-WAC first teamers, Marcus Berntson and Guillaume Bouvier who have 19 dual wins in 2003. Boise State is 13-7 on the season, including a six-match winning streak in the middle of the season. The tandem of Berntson and Bouvier have been ranked in the ITAs top 50 most of the season.
Fresno State - The Bulldogs picked up the second most wins in the WAC this season, going 16-7. Fresno State won nine of its final ten matches, dropping one to No. 24 Pepperdine. After departing in the first round last season, the Bulldogs are geared for a better championship, looking for good play from Hector Almada, Stefan Suta and Greg Shearer.
Hawaii - The Rainbows have won four of their last six heading to Boise for one final match before the conference tournament. At 14-11, Hawaii had five players with atleast 10 wins in the dual season. Reginaldo Moralejo leads the way for Rainbows with 15 wins, 10 from the No. 3 spot.
Nevada - Nevada suffered an eight-match losing streak early in the year, but finished the season with three wins in four tries. Adam Jooste, Milos Popovic and Jason Yelley have all held down the No. 1 singles spot this season for the Wolf Pack.
Rice - The 28th ranked Owls travel to Boise looking to avenge a semifinal loss to Tulsa in 2002. As the highest ranked team, they also boast the nations top doubles team in William and Richard Barker. The two went 20-0 on the year, 16-0 in dual play. The 19 wins by the Owls are the most in the WAC this year, and the six losses are the least. Having won five of its final six matches, Rice is looking for its first ever WAC title.
SMU - The Mustangs have used a number of line ups this season. Six players have played at atleast four different ladder spots. WAC Freshman of the Year from 2002, Gwinyai Chingoka, posted a team-high 10 wins. SMU has seven wins in its last nine matches, giving them momentum to defend the 2002 title.
Tulsa - The Golden Hurricane finished the season .500 at 12-12 with a pair of upsets wins against North Carolina and Auburn. Dustin Taylor was the only three-time WAC Player of the Week, going 15-5 on the seaosn, picking up seven wins from both the No. 2 and 3 spots.
PATTON NAMED HEAD COACH AT BOISE STATE - Former Bronco head coach Greg Patton, who led the Bronco mens tennis team from 1992 through 1998, has been rehired to again serve as the mens tennis head coach. From 1992 through 1998, Patton led the Broncos to five conference championships, with his teams making four NCAA Regional Tournament appearances and the 1997 team finishing fifth nationally. Patton was named NCAA Coach of the Year in 1997 after the Broncos top five national finish. In addition to his national coach of the year honor while at Boise State, Patton was also named conference coach of the year five times. His Bronco coaching record is 135-48 for a 73.8 winning percentage.
ITA RANKINGS - Rice enters this weeks ITA rankings 28th. Fresno State fell to 41st, with SMU just ahead of them at 38. Tulsa is 49th while Boise State (55) rounds out WAC teams in the top 75. The Rice twin duo of juniors Richard and William Barker return to No.1 in the nation, after falling to second in the March 26 release. The two won the 2002 Omni Hotels National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships doubles title in November. It was the first indoor national men's doubles title in Rice history. Fellow Owl, freshman Robert Searle, is currently the WACs highest ranked playerat No. 28, with fellow Owl, Richard Barker behind him at 29th.