Thursday, October 25, 2001

Men’s tennis team rebuilding
Players face tough competition in weekend tournament
By Jennifer Kaminske
Skiff Staff

Nearing the end of the fall season, the men’s tennis team is still searching for long term solutions to the loss of six seniors, including two-time All-American Esteban Carril, as it enters the Omni Hotels Regional Championships

“Hopefully, we can get a good core of young and talented guys that we can develop in place of (the graduated players),” head coach Joey Rive said.

Erin Munger/PHOTO EDITOR Junior Toni Gordon prepares to serve Wednesday during practice. The men’s tennis team competes in the Omni Hotels Regional Championships starting Friday at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center.

The tournament begins Friday and continues through Monday at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The opening round is 8:30 a.m. Friday.

The singles finalists and the doubles champions of this tournament will travel to the Brookhaven Country Club in Farmer’s Branch, Nov. 8-11 for the Omni Hotels National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships.

“I hope we can make an impact (in the tournament), and send one, if not a few players, through the rounds,” Rive said.

Rive is unsure of how the team will be this season with the loss of last season’s Omni Hotels champion Carril, who was ranked as the No. 11 singles player in the nation at the end of his TCU career. Rive said the team, ranked No. 5 last season, is in rebuilding mode.

Although the Frogs are competing without many of their top players this season, two returners have played well. Both senior Daniel Wajnberg and junior Toni Gordon made it to the qualifying round of the ITA All-American Championships in Stone Mountain, Ga. Oct. 9.

Rive said Wajnberg and Gordon should help out a lot this season with their talent and experience.

Rive said he hopes the two will help the team against some of the toughest schools in the state, such as Texas, Texas A&M and Baylor, at the tournament.

Texas A&M’s Jarin Skube was the doubles champion in the tournament last year, and singles champion of last weekend’s USTA Fall Invitational. Baylor’s doubles team, Mike Garcia and Nathan McGregor, defeated Skube and his partner, Khaled El Dorry, in the USTA Fall Invitational.

“Every school in the tournament has three or four really good guys,” Rive said.

A strong showing at the tournament would be a great way to finish the fall season, Rive said.

“We had an okay fall season,” said Rive. “It would be nice to end it with some great results in this tournament.”

Jennifer Kaminske
j.a.kaminske@student.tcu.edu