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4/15/2009 - MEN'S TENNIS
2009 Tennis Championships Kick Off at ETSU
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MACON, Ga. - The 2009 Atlantic Sun Men's and Women's Tennis Championship starts Thursday as ETSU playing as host for the third consecutive year. Seven schools travel to Johnson City, Tenn. to play for the rights to be the 2009 Tournament Champion.
On the men's side, the No.1 seed Buccaneers will look to become the first A-Sun school to win three consecutive titles since UCF won three-straight from 2003-2005. Stetson slides in behind the Bucs at No. 2 for the fourth year in a row. Stetson will face seventh seeded Lipscomb, while Belmont sits in third receiving its highest seed since entering the conference in 2002. The Bruins’ last highest seed was in 2006 when they sat at fourth and claimed the A-Sun tournament title. They will face sixth-seeded Mercer. Jacksonville is the fourth seed and faces fifth-seeded Campbell in their first match of the tournament.
The ETSU Lady Bucs take over the No. 2 spot after taking their only conference loss of the season to Stetson, 4-3. The Lady Bucs will face No. 7 Lipscomb in their first match of the tournament. The third-seeded JU women's squad tries for three-in-a-row as well, a feat last accomplished when UCF won four straight titles from 1997-2000. The Dolphins look to defend their title matching up with sixth-seeded Mercer. No. 4 Campbell and No. 5 Belmont face off to round out the field.
Though the Buccaneers are the favorites in this year's tournament, the A-Sun Tennis Championships have not been kind to its host institutions over the years. Just seven host schools have hoisted the championship trophy in conference history, and just two in the last 18 years. Those two are ETSU in 2007 and 2008. The trend is even bleaker on the women’s side, as just once in the 23-year history of the women’s championship has a host claimed the championship; Stetson back in 1989.
Courtesy of only seven teams being eligible for postseason play in the league this year, the top seeds have a decided advantage in their quest for the A-Sun's automatic berth to the NCAA Championship. Both the ETSU men and Stetson women received byes into the semifinal round of this week's championship by virtue of capturing the league's regular season title. The Hatters are looking for their fourth league championship in school history and first since 1989.
The Stetson tennis squads combined in 2009 to win an A-Sun best six Player of the Week awards. The men’s squad, led by stellar freshman play, earned four with freshman Maksim Levanovich leading the way with two, and junior Mark Mestan and freshman Ramiro Blanco were each recognized once. Veteran leadership powered the women’s squad however, with juniors Valentina Galbarini and Katherine Nowicki each earning a weekly award.
The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.
