Men's Tennis Awards

[XU05and07]

From goxavier.com (http://goxavier.cstv.com/sports/m-tennis/spec-rel/041808aab.html)...NCAA pairings are announced April 29th at 2:00pm on ESPNews


2008 ATLANTIC 10 MEN'S TENNIS ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM

First-Team School Cl. Hometown/Previous School
Felipe Acosta Saint Louis Sr. Bogota, Colombia/Colegio Andino
Michael Anders Charlotte Fr. Pensacola, Fla./B.T. Washington
Mustafa Gencsoy George Washington Sr. Istanbul, Turkey/Ayazaga Isik
Erik Hannah George Washington Fr. Bradenton, Fla./Bradenton Academy
Chris Herrlinger Xavier So. Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati County Day
Ra'ees Ismail Xavier Jr. Maineville, Ohio/Kings HS
Victor Lecina St. Bonaventure Jr. Barcelona, Spain/Stucom Centre D'Estudis
Yan Levinski George Washington Fr. Melbourne, Australia/Brighton Grammar School
Alex Mast Duquesne Jr. Lancaster, Pa./Conestoga Valley
Doug Matthews Xavier Jr. Maineville, Ohio/Kings HS
Michael Ortega Duquesne Sr. Guaynabo, Puerto Rice/Colegio San Ignacio
Michael Rohona Dayton So. Fishers, Ind./Cathedral HS

Second-Team School Cl. Hometown/Previous School
Pat Adams Saint Joseph's Jr. Altadena, Calif./La Salle (Calif.)
Felix Bernhoerster Charlotte Sr. Dusseldorf, Germany/Yokohama International
P.J. Hendrie Saint Louis So. New Braunfels, Texas/New Braunfels
Jon Luce St. Bonaventure Jr. Bemus Point, N.Y./Maple Grove
Jeremy McClelland Duquesne So. Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Park
Sean McManus Saint Louis Jr. Berryton, Kan./Hayden
Leo Mochiznki St. Bonaventure Jr. Madrid, Spain/King's
James O'Connell Dayton Sr. Toledo, Ohio/St. Francis de Sales
Sam Salyer George Washington Sr. Minneapolis, Minn./St. Paul Academy
Brian Schubert Xavier Sr. Highland, Mich./Milford
J.T. Torbeck Xavier So. Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Xavier
Diego Valdenegro St. Bonaventure So. Santiago, Chile/Subercaseaux College

Most Outstanding Performer - Doug Matthews, Xavier
Most Outstanding Rookie Performer - Yan Levinski, George Washington
Coach of The Year - Eric Toth, Xavier

2008 ATLANTIC 10 MEN'S TENNIS ACADEMIC ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Name School Cl. Hometown/Previous School Major
Chris Butera La Salle Jr. Mason, Ohio/Mason HS Accounting
Brad Clinard Charlotte Jr. High Point, N.C./GTCC Middle College Economics
Ra'ees Ismail Xavier Jr. Maineville, Ohio/Kings HS Chemistry
Mark Maciuch Duquesne So. Chicago, Ill./Loyola Academy Business
Adam Reeb Saint Louis Jr. Belleville, Ill./Althoff CatholicBelleville, Ill. Business Administration
Sam Salyer George Washington Sr. Minneapolis, Minn./St. Paul Academy American Studies

Student-Athlete of the Year - Sam Salyer, George Washington

[pimpinthebox]

Congrats to the Men's Tennis Team for turning in such a great season. But it ain't over yet!

[xeus]

Any word on when and where the NCAA tourney matches will be?

[XU05and07]

The first and second rounds are played at campus sites May 9-10 and May 10-11.

Finals are:
May 16-26, 2008
Michael D. Case Tennis Center
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Host: University of Tulsa


We'll find out April 29th at 2:00pm on ESPNews if we play at home or away

[Lamont Sanford]

Congrats on a great regular season and impressive showing in the A-10 Tourney by Coach Toth's men. Looks like they'll find out a little later today where they're headed for the NCAA.

Let's go Tennis Muskies!

[XU05and07]

Xavier nets NCAA berth
BY JEREMY PETER | JPETER@ENQUIRER.COM

The Xavier University men's tennis squad today will find out its opponent in the NCAA Tournament.

The Musketeers secured an automatic bid with a 4-0 sweep of George Washington in the Atlantic 10 Conference finals. It is the first A-10 title for the tennis program as well as its first team appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Xavier was last represented in the tournament in 1971 by Dennis Egan and Robby Thomas, who made the tournament as individuals.

The Musketeers made it to the conference finals last year, but their aspirations for a championship were cut short by a No. 1-seeded Charlotte team that edged them out of an A-10 title by a score of 4-3.

"Excited doesn't explain the feeling," coach Eric Toth said. "When we walked out of there (after the loss) last year we were clear on what our goal was going to be, and that was to get back to the conference championship and get it done."

Toth was named the 2008 A-10 coach of the year in his first season at the helm of the men's team. He is an Elder grad who made a name for himself on UC's tennis squad in the early '90's. Prior to taking over head coaching duties for the Musketeers, he spent 10 years with the program as an assistant to Xavier Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Jim Brockhoff.

"Jim and I really worked well as a team," Toth said. "I feel fortunate to have had him as a mentor. It's prepared me to be a head coach."

Besides posting Xavier firsts, Toth's team is unique in another way. Of the 10 players on the Musketeers men's tennis roster, six are from the Cincinnati area.

Senior Brian Quinn is a Wyoming graduate, juniors Doug Matthews and Ra'ees Ismail went to Kings, sophomores Chris Herrlinger and J.T. Torbeck graduated from Cincinnati Country Day and St. Xavier, respectively, and freshman Brian Starr played at Walnut Hills.

Matthews has known his doubles partner Herrlinger since he was 10. In contrast, most if not all of the teams that Xavier faces are made up of players recruited from all over the globe.

Toth and his players feel that's an advantage for the Musketeers because their opponents have had a steeper hill to climb when it comes to learning a teammate's strengths and weaknesses.

"I think we all realized if we stayed (in Cincinnati), we'd have a better chance to win," Ismail said. "We all know each other's game very well, and that's the key."

The familiarity has paid off not only in team accomplishments, but individual accolades as well.

Matthews was named the A-10's Most Outstanding Player for 2008. Teammates Ismail and Herrlinger earned spots on the A-10 all-conference first-team and Schubert and Torbeck took second-team honors.

[XU05and07]

CINCINNATI - The Xavier men's tennis team will be playing No. 15 Illinois in the First Round of the 2008 NCAA Men's Tennis as announced Tuesday afternoon on ESPNews. This is the first-ever team NCAA Tournament appearance for the Musketeers as XU earned the automatic bid to the tournament after winning the 2008 Atlantic 10 Championship on April 4.

The Musketeers will be traveling to Champaign, Ill., for First and Second Round action. Please continue to check www.GOXAVIER.com for the latest updates and information concerning the tournament.