Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Tennis Will Open Season at Middle Tennessee State
09/15/2004 | 12:00:00 | Men's Tennis
Sept. 15, 2004
By Dustin Thompson
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The men's tennis team will begin their fall season as they will participate in the 18th annual Middle Tennessee Fall Invitational September 17-19. The three-day tournament will be held at the Buck Bouldin Tennis Center in Murfreesboro, Tenn. and will host 10 teams.
The Salukis come into the fall season with an optimistic outlook and are eager to get the season under way. The Salukis are led by three seniors Julian Angel Botero, Lukasz Soswa and Alexandru Nomicos. The trio of seniors played a big part in last year's 10-11 season and head coach Missy Jeffrey expects the three to lead the Salukis to another solid year. "This year's team is stronger than the team we had last year. This year's team is a team that will be able to compete with anyone in the conference and any team in this tournament" said Jeffrey.
Along with the three seniors the Salukis also welcome back juniors Bojan Ilievski and Tomas Gonzalez as well as, welcome new comers Nick Baurer and Rodrigo Lama. Jeffrey expects Baurer and Lama to make an immediate impact on the team. "These two bring a lot to the team. Lama has NCAA experience and has went to the NCAA championships, while Baurer brings a depth to the team that we have been lacking the last couple years. Both players bring a great enthusiasm to the team and both have winning attitudes" said Jeffrey.
The Middle Tennessee Invitational begins Friday, September 17 at 8:30 a.m.. Results for the Invitational can be found at www.siusalukis.com or at www.goblueraiders.com.
Participating Teams Include: UAB, Belmont, Cumberland Univ., Memphis, Middle Tenn., South Alabama, Southern Illinois, Tennessee Tech, Vanderbilt and Western Kentucky
