May 20, 2005

Men’s Tennis Posts 8-12 Record; Competes In NAIA Region IX/X Tourney

The Malone College men’s tennis team, directed by first-year head coach Tom Brown, completed the 2005 regular season with an 8-11 mark overall and a third-place finish among the nine teams in the American Mideast Conference with a 5-3 record.  In addition, the squad qualified for the NAIA IX/X Tournament as the # 3 seed but lost in the first round to Roberts Wesleyan (NY) College (#6 seed) by the slim margin of 5-4.  The victory was especially difficult for the Pioneers as they had beaten Roberts Wesleyan 6-3 a week earlier in regular-season play.

The Pioneers began the 2005 campaign losing five of their first six matches against some very competitive teams, including NCAA Div. II University of Charleston (WV) and NCAA Div. II Slippery Rock (PA) University.  The team’s lone victory during that stretch came at home with a decisive 8-1 win over NCAA Div. III Wilmington College.

Next, the Pioneers headed to Hilton Head, South Carolina for spring break where they defeated Milligan (TN) College 5-4 but lost to Ohio Wesleyan University 7-2 and to NCAA Div. II Northern Kentucky University 9-0. 

But then the tide changed a bit for the team as they returned home to win six of their final 10 regular-season matches to secure the spot in the NAIA postseason event.
Senior Adam Carrick (West Holmes H.S.) posted a team-best 13-6 mark at #4 singles and also teamed with #2 singles player Dave Neidlinger (So., Copley H.S.) for a squad-leading 13-5 record at #1 doubles.

Senior Brian Paul (Louisville H.S.) occupied the #3 singles position and tallied the team’s second-best singles mark at 8-11 and paired with Jason Christman (So., McKinley H.S.) for a doubles mark of 8-4.  Christman also paced the Pioneers at #1 singles and posted a 6-8 record while battling injuries for much of the season.

Looking ahead to the 2006 season, the Pioneers will need to regroup a bit after losing seniors Carrick and Paul.  But with one year of collegiate coaching under his belt, Brown hopes to push his current returnees, meshing them with the newcomers, a step closer towards an AMC title and a better showing in the postseason.

 
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