Jan. 16, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - After one of the best seasons in program history in 2008, the Penn State men's tennis team will kick-off the 2009 season making a trip to Raleigh, N.C. to take on the 49th-ranked North Carolina State Wolfpack. First serve is set for noon on Sunday at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center.
Todd Doebler returns for his third year as head coach after guiding the program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament win in the modern era over No. 27 Virginia Commonwealth last May. The Nittany Lions will be looking to earn their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
"We are very excited to be kicking off the year with a team like N.C. State," said Doebler. "It will be a challenging away match against a team that is known for their toughness."
Penn State returns eight letter winners from last year's squad, including two players that earned at least 20 wins in singles competition last season. Leading the way for the Nittany Lions this year are senior captains Brendan Lynch (North Potomac, Md.) and Adam Slagter (Austin, Texas). Lynch, who is fifth in the ITA Northeast Regional Rankings, finished last season with an overall record of 27-10, including a 7-3 record against Beg Ten opponents. Slagter returns after going 14-11 in singles action last season. Additionally, he finished ranked No. 5 in the ITA Northeast Regionals Singles Rankings.
Returning for the junior class will be Guillaume St-Maurice (Saint-Eustache, Quebec) and Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.). St-Maurice chalked up a 15-7 overall singles record, going an impressive 7-2 in Big Ten play. Gormley went 17-10 in singles during his sophomore campaign.
Leading the sophomore class for the Nittany Lions will be Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia). The Australia native posted a 22-13 overall record in singles, including a 7-3 mark in Big Ten competition. Benji Kendall (Villanova, Pa.) and Jamie Cox (Acworth, Ga.) are the others that round out the sophomore class.
The Nittany Lions will bring along two newcomers this season. Freshmen Jason Lee (Sydney, Australia) and Chris Hasyn (Lansdale, Pa.) will make their debuts with the Nittany Lions. Lee enters the spring ranked No. 20 in the ITA Northeast Regional Rankings. Hasyn and Gormley are 15th in the ITA Northeast Regional Doubles Rankings.
Penn State's first home match will be Saturday, Jan. 24, when the Lions take on St. Bonaventure and St. Joseph's in a doubleheader at the Penn State Tennis Center. The Nittany Lions will host the ITA Kickoff Weekend on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. Penn State will play host to Oklahoma State, Duke and Florida State.