Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Tennis opens spring season with two weekend matches
01/26/2010 | 12:00:00 | Men's Tennis
Jan. 26, 2010
www.SIUSalukis.com
MATCH INFORMATION Date(s): January 30-31
Location: Richmond, Ky.
Site(s): Greg Adams Indoor Tennis Center
Head Coaches: Dann Nelson (70-52 overall; 52-38 at SIU); Rob Oertel (237-218 overall; 110-100 at EKU); Mark Beckham (124-108 overall and at G'Town)
Saluki Assistant Coach: Hugo Vidal (Graduate Assistant)
NET NOTES
The Southern Illinois Men's Tennis team is in its 87th year of existence... Head Coach Dann Nelson is in his fifth season with the team and holds a 52-38 (.578) mark with the Salukis... SIU enters 2010 as the defending Missouri Valley Conference champions after a 18-7 (5-1 MVC) mark in 2009... The Salukis captured their first MVC crown since 1990 by defeating Drake, 4-3, in the MVC Tournament title match... In the NCAA Tournament, the Dawgs fell to #7 UCLA in the first round, 4-0... The Salukis 18 victories were the most since 1977, when they won a program record 21 matches... The 2009 squad's .720 winning percentage is the best since 1972 (.875).
ON THE SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
SIU opens their 2010 spring schedule on Saturday, when they travel to Richmond, Ky., to face 2009 Ohio Valley Conference regular season champ Eastern Kentucky at noon. The Salukis will stay in Richmond for Sunday, when they face NAIA powerhouse Georgetown College at 8 a.m.
SCOUTING EASTERN KENTUCKY
The Colonels enter 2010 coming off an 18-9 season in 2009 where they went a perfect 8-0 in the regular season. Led by head coach Rob Oertel, Eastern Kentucky returns all but two players from last season's squad. EKU has already dropped one match this season to Purdue, 1-6, in West Lafayette, Ind. Leading the Colonels this season is Alex Das Izquierdo, who posted a 17-9 record in #1 singles.
SCOUTING GEORGETOWN (KY.)
The Tigers are looking to rebound following a 10-10 season in 2009, though they finished ranked 28th in the final NAIA poll. Head coach Kevin Calhoun returns four letterwinners from last year's squad, including senior Miguel Reyes. Of the 11 players on Georgetown's 2009-10 roster, seven are freshmen, while another three are sophomores. Georgetown College is a liberal arts school located in Georgetown, Ky., with 1,500 students.
NELSON NEARS MILESTONE
When SIU faces Buffalo in Boca Raton, Fla., on March 9, head coach Dann Nelson will become only the second coach in SIU men's tennis history to have coached 100 games for the Dawgs. The only other coach to achieve that feat is the legendary Richard LeFevre, who amassed 819 matches in his 36 years at the helm.
ROSTER TURNOVER
There will be many new faces on the Salukis roster this season, as the team returns only three players - seniors Lucas Waked and Anton Leonenko, plus sophomore Pavlo Buryi - from last year's MVC title squad. However, among the seven newcomers, three have collegiate experience: Falk De Beenhouwer (Lindsey Wilson College - NAIA), Mpilo Migogo (Indiana State), and Chris Nowak (Middle Tennessee State).
WAKED RETURNS
The beginning of the spring season will also bring the return of SIU senior Lucas Waked to the lineup. After being sidelined for most of the fall season with an elbow injury, the Brazilian is seeking to improve off of last year's 10-12 performance in singles play.
MIGOGO GOES TO SOUTHERN
On Jan. 19, the SIU men's tennis squad added a new player to their roster in Mpilo Migogo. A native of Zimbabwe who resides in Johannesburg, South Africa, Migogo played the last three years with Indiana State. As a member of the Sycamores' squad, Migogo posted a 38-45 mark in singles play, including a 10-8 record in the MVC.
SAME FACE, NEW PLACE
When the Salukis take the court Sunday against Georgetown College, the Tigers will see a familiar face on the SIU side in junior Falk De Beenhouwer. De Beenhouwer, a transfer from Lindsey Wilson College. In his two years at LWC, De Beenhouwer faced Georgetown four times, going 3-0 in singles and 4-0 in doubles.
Players Mentioned
