Lester Cook
| School: |
Texas A&M University |
| Year: |
graduated |
| Home Town: |
Sherman Oaks, Calif. |
| Home State: |
N/A |
| Home Country: |
United States(USA) |
| High School: |
Laurel Springs |
| Height: |
5-10 |
| Weight: |
160 lbs. |
| Birth Date: |
Tuesday, April 24, 1984 |
| Dominant Hand: |
Right |
| Major: |
|
| Singles Record: |
84-30 |
| Doubles Record: |
76-31 |
“Lester earned All-American honors last season and followed that with a solid fall season with Ante Matijevic. Lester has made a good progression since coming here in January his freshman year. I expect him to compete at a very high level this season.” —Coach Tim Cass
An All-America selection in doubles … A two-time All-Big 12 selection in singles and doubles … Reached the NCAA round of 16 in doubles as a freshman and as a sophomore … Reached NCAA round of 32 in singles as a sophomore … The Big 12 No. 2 Singles Champion as a sophomore … Won the ITA All-American doubles championship with teammate Ante Matijevic as a junior.
2003 (JUNIOR/FALL): In the summer, he teamed with two-time All-American Ryan Newport to win the doubles championship at the 2003 USTA Futures of Sunnyvale (Calif.) at the Sunnyvale Tennis Center … Unseeded in the field of 16, Cook and Newport followed their win over the No. 2-seeds in the semifinals with a win in the finals in three sets over top-seeded Nick Rainey and Brian Wilson, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 … Was 11-3 in fall action … Was presented the Miner Family Outstanding Player Award at the AUDI/Napa Valley Tennis Classic … Won the ITA All-American doubles championship with Ante Matijevic … Ranked No. 2, the duo beat the No. 1-ranked tandem in the nation from Rice in William Barker and Richard Barker, 8-6 … Earned the top seed at the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships.
2002-03 (SOPHOMORE): Earned All-America accolades in doubles … All-Big 12 Conference in singles and doubles … The Big 12 No. 2 Singles Champion … A team co-captain … Finished ranked No. 30 nationally in singles … Was ranked as high as No. 26 … Finished ranked No. 8 and No. 23 in doubles with Ante Matijevic and Ryan Newport, respectively … Selected to the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships … Reached the NCAA round of 16 after being seeded Nos. 5-8 with Matijevic … Spent six weeks ranked No. 3 nationally with Matijevic and two weeks ranked No. 5 … Cook tallied the most Big 12 wins on the squad with a 6-1 record … Tallied a 31-10 overall record and a team-best 24-5 mark in dual play … Put together an impressive 20-5 record at No. 2 singles and a 4-0 mark at No. 1 … Held an eight-match winning streak and won 19 of his last 22 matches … Posted 11 wins over ranked opponents … Beat the nation’s No. 2-ranked player in Baylor’s Benedikt Dorsch in straight sets in the Big 12 semifinals … Other top ranked win was over Stanford’s David Martin who was ranked No. 15 at the time of the match … In doubles, he finished second on the team in wins at 28-14 … When teamed with Matijevic, the duo was 17-10 overall and 7-5 in dual play… Had wins over the Nos. 2, 3, 3, 9, 24, and 30-ranked opponents at the time of the match … When teamed with Newport, the duo was 11-3 with three top 25 wins … Clinched team wins against Duke, Nebraska and UMBC … After a stellar debut as a freshman, he started second season in Aggieland by making waves nationally in doubles … Teaming with Matijevic for the first time, the duo became the first Aggies to reach the semifinals at the ITA All-American … In first round action, they beat Alabama’s No. 30-ranked Maxim Belski and Stephen Mitchell, 8-3 … In the round of 16, the A&M duo tallied the win of the day as they ousted the second-seeded and No. 3-ranked tandem from San Diego State of Oliver Maiberger and Ryan Redondo, 9-8 (3) … In the round of 8, A&M topped Washington’s No. 27-ranked tandem of Ari Strasberg and Alex Vlaski, 8-4 … A month later, the A&M duo reached the quarterfinals at the ITA National Indoors.
2001-02 (FRESHMAN): An All-Big 12 selection in singles … Reached the round of 16 in the NCAA Doubles Championship as a freshman with Ryan Newport … Joined the team in January of 2002 after graduating from high school early … Finished ranked No. 17 in doubles … Broke into the rankings at No. 63 in singles and was ranked as high as No. 12 in doubles with Newport … Best singles win was over then No. 24-ranked Michael Yani of Duke in three sets … Other top singles wins were over Auburn’s Andrew Colombo, TCU’s Alex Menichini, and Texas’ Jose Zarhi … His second win over Zarhi came as the last man standing in the Big 12 Championships semifinal match in 2002 … Cook needed a third set to clinch the victory for the Aggies and eventually the home court advanatage in the NCAA Championships First and Second Round … Ranked fourth on the squad in overall singles wins at 20-12 … Was 17-9 in dual play and posted a 5-2 record in Big 12 play … Led the Aggies in doubles wins at 25-7 … Also teammed with Jarin Skube and Keith From … Posted the clinching the team point against Duke, Oklahoma and Texas (4-27).
HIGH SCHOOL/JUNIORS: Was ranked as high as No. 5 nationally in the 18s in singles … In the 16s, he was ranked as high as No. 6 nationally … His playing experience in professional level tournaments had him ranked near the 1,000 position by the ATP Tour in both singles and doubles … He has seen action in several national tournaments.
PERSONAL: Lester Monte Cook is the son of Monte and Daniele Cook of Sherman Oaks, Calif. … Born April 24, 1984 in Los Angeles, Calif. … Is a general studies major … Older brother Jason played at New Mexico in 1996 for coach Tim Cass before a three-year career at UCLA and played on the same UNM team with former A&M assistant coach Tad Berkowitz … Most memorable moment at A&M was “being the last match on in the semis of the Big 12 Tournament against Texas here at A&M and winning 7-5 in the third.”
LESTER UP CLOSE …
Who is your sports-related role model? Lance Armstrong
Favorite movie? Old School
I can’t believe I watch this TV show? 8 Simple Rules …
Favorite Aggie tradition? Singing the War Hymn before and after matches
Favorite tennis player? Gustavo Kuerten
Ultimate goal at Texas A&M? To be number one
Who had the greatest impact on your athletic career? My family
Favorite sport to play beside tennis? Snowboarding and surfing
Favorite childhood toy? Tennis racquet and ball
Favorite sport to watch? Football
What is the best part about playing tennis at Texas A&M? The crowd
