2008 Woodie Awards
Men's tennis sweeps home competition
The men's team started their season off the right way with three match wins at home
Joe Brown
Issue date: 2/4/08 Section: Sports
While one dynasty was busy playing football Sunday night, a different kind of dynasty started its season on the right track.
The SCSU men's tennis team took to the hard courts at Gold's Gym in Sartell to defeat Wisconsin-Eau Claire and St. Scholastica Friday and Concordia College Saturday.
"It was a nice team effort, everyone got to play and contributed," head coach Jerry Anderson said. "We started on the right foot."
Against Eau Claire, the teams were tied through the singles matches with wins by junior Wojciech Batorski, sophomore Mike Master and junior Ryan Schoenfeld.
In doubles, the Huskies proved their dominance by sweeping all three of their doubles matches to win the meet 6-3.
The Huskies continued on that day, utterly dismantling St. Scholastica. Only one of the six singles matches went to three sets, and the doubles continued to dismantle their opponents.
The team of Schoenfeld and first-year player Kevin Bauleke shut out the opposing team 8-0.
"It's important to get a good start and to build off of that," said senior Kevin Lukens, who went 2-1 in singles and 2-0 in doubles with junior and St. Cloud Tech graduate Kris Johnson.
The final match of the weekend saw another perfect performance for the tennis team as they defeated Concordia by a score of 9-0. First year player Tim Keller dominated in singles with scores of 6-0 and 6-1 to defeat the Cobber's Andrew Tancabel. Doubles saw the team of Master and Batorski score another shutout victory for the Huskies 8-0.
During the Concordia match, with every successful play on the ball, after every ace or with every volley accidentally lobbed into the net, the Huskies were a team that showed their emotion on their sleeves.
"It's good to have that heart in the matches, as long as it's controlled passion and show respect for their opponents and their selves," said Anderson.
Said Lukens, "Everyone loves to play. Everyone has a lot of heart and it shows."
This success is nothing new to the men's tennis team. They currently have two impressive team streaks entering this season: six straight NCC conference championships and seven straight NCAA Division II tournament bids.
According to Coach Anderson, there are a few keys to continue this success for this season. "Continued hard work, teamwork, guys gelling together, chemistry and hard work every match."
With an experienced group with six upperclassmen, the Huskies seem primed for their last shot at the NCC crown.
"Leadership is very important, they see what does and what does not work," said Anderson. "It is important to set an example for the three freshmen."
On Feb. 9, the tennis team will look to extend their unbeaten streak, hosting Luther College, and will play visitor to Carleton College on Feb. 10 in Lakeville.
The SCSU men's tennis team took to the hard courts at Gold's Gym in Sartell to defeat Wisconsin-Eau Claire and St. Scholastica Friday and Concordia College Saturday.
"It was a nice team effort, everyone got to play and contributed," head coach Jerry Anderson said. "We started on the right foot."
Against Eau Claire, the teams were tied through the singles matches with wins by junior Wojciech Batorski, sophomore Mike Master and junior Ryan Schoenfeld.
In doubles, the Huskies proved their dominance by sweeping all three of their doubles matches to win the meet 6-3.
The Huskies continued on that day, utterly dismantling St. Scholastica. Only one of the six singles matches went to three sets, and the doubles continued to dismantle their opponents.
The team of Schoenfeld and first-year player Kevin Bauleke shut out the opposing team 8-0.
"It's important to get a good start and to build off of that," said senior Kevin Lukens, who went 2-1 in singles and 2-0 in doubles with junior and St. Cloud Tech graduate Kris Johnson.
The final match of the weekend saw another perfect performance for the tennis team as they defeated Concordia by a score of 9-0. First year player Tim Keller dominated in singles with scores of 6-0 and 6-1 to defeat the Cobber's Andrew Tancabel. Doubles saw the team of Master and Batorski score another shutout victory for the Huskies 8-0.
During the Concordia match, with every successful play on the ball, after every ace or with every volley accidentally lobbed into the net, the Huskies were a team that showed their emotion on their sleeves.
"It's good to have that heart in the matches, as long as it's controlled passion and show respect for their opponents and their selves," said Anderson.
Said Lukens, "Everyone loves to play. Everyone has a lot of heart and it shows."
This success is nothing new to the men's tennis team. They currently have two impressive team streaks entering this season: six straight NCC conference championships and seven straight NCAA Division II tournament bids.
According to Coach Anderson, there are a few keys to continue this success for this season. "Continued hard work, teamwork, guys gelling together, chemistry and hard work every match."
With an experienced group with six upperclassmen, the Huskies seem primed for their last shot at the NCC crown.
"Leadership is very important, they see what does and what does not work," said Anderson. "It is important to set an example for the three freshmen."
On Feb. 9, the tennis team will look to extend their unbeaten streak, hosting Luther College, and will play visitor to Carleton College on Feb. 10 in Lakeville.