Tennis fall season shows promise for spring

By Prem Ramkumar     11/13/08 6:00pm

After a strong individual showing from junior Bruno Rosa at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association South Central Regional Championship and National Intercollegiate Indoor Championship, the men's tennis team will settle down for a long rest over the next few months. The Owls will kick off the spring-heavy year with a match-up against Conference USA rival University of Memphis on Jan. 16. After their sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament bid and yet another promising fall season, the Owls look only to improve upon their success with returning strong leadership and new firepower from the eighth best recruiting class in the nation. With much to prove, freshmen Sam Garforth-Bles, Christian Saravia, Isamu Tachibana and Andy Wang as well as returning All-American stars Rosa and senior Christoph Müller have high expectations for this 22nd nationally-ranked team. None, however, exude as much confidence as junior captain Chong Wang.

"We have a really solid team along with good freshmen," Wang said. "I think we can become a top 10 team in the nation. I know we can be really competitive with any other team out there."

Last year's 4-0 loss to the formidable University of Texas in the NCAA Championship was closer than it seemed on paper, but the Owls began their renewed quest to the top only days after their loss. Coaches Ron Smarr and Efe Ustundag took their players to watch the Round of 16 teams play, which only highlights their dedication to become elite.

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"This year we actually got to see a top 16 team compete," Ustundag said. "[We saw] the energy, the intensity and the commitment of play. We wanted to learn from them this year so we could be right there next year."

Smarr and Ustundag have been working hard to improve the Owls by focusing on doubles, on playing aggressively and on closing out matches definitively. Smarr said that Tachibana, Garforth-Bles and Saravia are here to make an immediate impact and lead the Owls to the next echelon of NCAA tennis.

"I'm very excited because we have a great team, and I know we are going to do great things," Saravia said. "I don't feel there is a lot of pressure on me because there are three other great freshmen and amazing returning players. I know we will go far."

Although the Owls begin the season in earnest in the spring, they have been working hard in the fall at both the individual and team level to prepare for the season. Although the Holiday Inn Astrodome Rice Fall Invite was canceled, the team still participated in match play at the Baylor Invitational and Texas Fall Invitational. At the individual level Rosa and Müller made a great deal of noise in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association at the South Central Regional Championships and National Championships.

At the Baylor Invitational on Sept. 26-28 in Waco, Texas, freshmen Andy Wang and Garforth-Bles made their debuts. Although Garforth-Bles lost in the first round in Flight A, he won an impressive consolation match 6-1, 6-4 against the seventh seed Ed Corrie from University of Texas at Austin. Wang rolled through players from UT and Texas Christian University in Flight B to reach the Round of 16.

As expected, Müller easily reached the Round of 16 before being ousted by the ninth seed, while standout Rosa lost in a gritty quarterfinal match. Another bright spot for the Owls at the Baylor invitational occurred at the doubles end, where Garforth-Bles and Müller teamed up to take down Oklahoma State University's second seed, before falling in the subsequent round.

Another team tournament was the Texas Fall Invitational that was held at UT's Penick-Allison Tennis Center from Oct. 31-Nov. 2. After advancing past the Round of 64 with straight-set victories, Saravia and Tachibana put forth an admirable effort before falling to the first and second seeds both from UT. Saravia and Tachibana showcased their skills as an impressive tandem by defeating a University of Texas-San Antonio doubles pair 8-0. However, Garforth-Bles was upset as the fifth seed in a grueling three-set match.

The fall season showcases intercollegiate tennis at a more individual level, particularly during the ITA South Central Regional Championships and ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships. The regional took place at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center at Texas A&M University, where Müller lost in the quarterfinals to Will Spencer of A&M 7-6, 7-5.

Rosa was even more successful, reaching the finals by defeating the Aggies' Austin Krajicek 7-5, 6-1 and Texas Tech University's Raony Carvalho 6-4, 6-2 on the way. Even though the second seed fell to the Aggies' third seed Conor Pollack 4-6, 6-1, 7-5, he still qualified for ITA nationals. Rosa and Pollack have been a pair to watch as they have gone back and forth in match decisions, with the last going to Rosa as he dispatched Pollack last year in the NCAA tournament victory over the Aggies.

At the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championship at the Boar's Head Sports Club in Charlottesville, Va., Rosa made it past Virginia's Dominic Inglet 6-7, 7-5, 6-4 in a gutsy first round effort. However, he came up short in the second round against Ohio State University's Justin Kronauge 6-4, 6-4, who later went on to lose to his teammate in the finals.

" [ R o s a ] played a brilliant first round," Ustundag said. "He was very emotional and very concentrated. He was very passionate and very tough. I'm proud of him, but had he played that way the next day, the outcome would have been more favorable."

The Owls capped off another great fall season at both the individual and team level, but this is only the beginning as they prepare to make another run at the NCAA Division I Championships. The Owls have had their moments when the sky seemed to be the limit, but soon after notching impressive victories, an anticlimactic loss resulting from inconsistent energy and play occasionally occurs. Consistency of play may be the only limiting factor for this talented team with lofty goals.

"The goals are always the same: win Conference USA, host an NCAA Regional and reach the Elite Eight [at least]," Ustundag said. "We need to have a better individual showing."

From what can be seen from fall play, the Owls are a dangerous team for any opponent because of the sheer talent, experience, leadership, resilience and confidence men's tennis possesses. If the cohesion remains and the inconsistency is curtailed, the Owls should make a strong run in the spring.

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