2008 Woodie Awards
Men's tennis sees silver lining in cloudy performance at Princeton
James Hill '11
Issue date: 9/26/07 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 1
Although it may seem that the Saint Joseph's men's tennis team struggled through the Princeton Invitational last weekend, the Hawks see it differently.
In strict terms of wins and losses, the Hawks went 1-10 in singles and doubles play. However, Coach Gene Miller stressed that the team is improving and works well together.
Early Friday morning, the Hawks traveled to Princeton, N.J., to face a field featuring several Ivy League schools. The tournament included players from Princeton University, Yale University, Columbia University, Cornell University, and University of Pennsylvania, plus the University of Maryland, University of Minnesota, SUNY Binghamton, and St. Joe's.
The Hawks had seven participants in the singles brackets and three pairs in the doubles brackets. Will Pearson, '11, led the way for Saint Josephs, recording the Hawks' only win of the weekend. Pearson beat Andreas Danielsson of Binghamton 6-1, 6-4.
Columbia's Magdi El Mihdawy then defeated Pearson in a second-round match 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. Pearson, playing in only his second collegiate tournament, displayed some of the improvement that Coach Miller noted.
"The team chemistry is great. Our team did very well at Navy where the competition was very stiff. The guys got tougher through that competition," said Miller, referring to the Hawks' play in the Navy Invitational Sept. 14-16. "I think I have a good bunch of guys. They might be less talented, but the guys are better workers. I think they will find success together and I think they will surprise themselves this year."
Patrick Cerutti, '11, was also recognized by Miller for showing improvement. Cerutti lost a hard-fought match to Justen Roth of Penn. Cerutti rallied after not winning a game in the first set and notched a second set win, then managed to make Roth sweat out a 6-4 third set.
Like the Navy Invitational, the Hawks again faced stiff competition last weekend. Half of the Hawk losses were against seeded opponents. Pat Adams, '09, lost to fifth-seeded Michael Caldwell of Yale, and Nick Tuxen, '10, lost to third-seeded Calvin Bennett of Yale in singles play.
In doubles play, Phil Garabedian, '08, and Cerutti lost 8-2 to a fourth-seeded pair from Columbia, Phil Bayliss, '09, and Pearson lost a close 8-6 match to a fourth-seeded pair from Princeton, and Adams and Tuxen lost 9-8 to a third-seeded pair from Cornell.
Other Hawks participating in singles matches included Garabedian, Brian Costello, '09, and Bayliss.Although the Hawks would certainly like to win more, they should be pleased with their improving performance according to Miller.
Earlier this month, in Annapolis, Md., the Hawks faced the U.S. Naval Academy, Oklahoma University, University of Arkansas, Maryland, and Princeton. The Hawks lost all 23 singles matches and recorded only three wins in doubles matches. With few exceptions, the matches were not close. Last weekend, the Hawks were clearly more competitive.
The team will look to build on this improvement starting Friday, Sept. 28, at the ECAC Championships in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
In strict terms of wins and losses, the Hawks went 1-10 in singles and doubles play. However, Coach Gene Miller stressed that the team is improving and works well together.
Early Friday morning, the Hawks traveled to Princeton, N.J., to face a field featuring several Ivy League schools. The tournament included players from Princeton University, Yale University, Columbia University, Cornell University, and University of Pennsylvania, plus the University of Maryland, University of Minnesota, SUNY Binghamton, and St. Joe's.
The Hawks had seven participants in the singles brackets and three pairs in the doubles brackets. Will Pearson, '11, led the way for Saint Josephs, recording the Hawks' only win of the weekend. Pearson beat Andreas Danielsson of Binghamton 6-1, 6-4.
Columbia's Magdi El Mihdawy then defeated Pearson in a second-round match 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. Pearson, playing in only his second collegiate tournament, displayed some of the improvement that Coach Miller noted.
"The team chemistry is great. Our team did very well at Navy where the competition was very stiff. The guys got tougher through that competition," said Miller, referring to the Hawks' play in the Navy Invitational Sept. 14-16. "I think I have a good bunch of guys. They might be less talented, but the guys are better workers. I think they will find success together and I think they will surprise themselves this year."
Patrick Cerutti, '11, was also recognized by Miller for showing improvement. Cerutti lost a hard-fought match to Justen Roth of Penn. Cerutti rallied after not winning a game in the first set and notched a second set win, then managed to make Roth sweat out a 6-4 third set.
Like the Navy Invitational, the Hawks again faced stiff competition last weekend. Half of the Hawk losses were against seeded opponents. Pat Adams, '09, lost to fifth-seeded Michael Caldwell of Yale, and Nick Tuxen, '10, lost to third-seeded Calvin Bennett of Yale in singles play.
In doubles play, Phil Garabedian, '08, and Cerutti lost 8-2 to a fourth-seeded pair from Columbia, Phil Bayliss, '09, and Pearson lost a close 8-6 match to a fourth-seeded pair from Princeton, and Adams and Tuxen lost 9-8 to a third-seeded pair from Cornell.
Other Hawks participating in singles matches included Garabedian, Brian Costello, '09, and Bayliss.Although the Hawks would certainly like to win more, they should be pleased with their improving performance according to Miller.
Earlier this month, in Annapolis, Md., the Hawks faced the U.S. Naval Academy, Oklahoma University, University of Arkansas, Maryland, and Princeton. The Hawks lost all 23 singles matches and recorded only three wins in doubles matches. With few exceptions, the matches were not close. Last weekend, the Hawks were clearly more competitive.
The team will look to build on this improvement starting Friday, Sept. 28, at the ECAC Championships in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
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