Sunday, 02/07/2010

UNM takes on Middle Tennessee State and Denver Friday and Sunday

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The 50th-ranked University of New Mexico men’s tennis team hosts a pair of matches this weekend, taking on No. 57 Middle Tennessee State at 6 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5, and meeting up with No. 63 Denver on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 11 a.m. Both matches will be held at the Linda Estes Tennis Center on south campus.

The Lobos (1-2) look to get back on the winning track after dropping two matches at the ITA Kick-Off event this past weekend. The Lobos fell 7-0 to No. 3 Ohio State and 4-1 to No. 30 Notre Dame. Despite the losses, the Lobos picked up a spot in the ITA rankings, moving from 51st to 50th.

OPPONENT SCOUTING REPORT
New Mexico is 2-0 all-time against Middle Tennessee State, who they defeated 4-3 in 2008. The Blue Raiders are a deceiving 0-3 on the season after losses to then-ranked No. 8 Texas and No. 40 Texas Tech last weekend as well as a loss to No. 5 Tennessee on Wednesday. They wrapped up the 2009 season with a 16-10 record and 57th final ranking, losing to Boise State in the first round of the NCAA tournament after winning the Sun Belt Tournament.

Middle Tennessee State’s John Peers checks in at a 105 singles ranking, while Peers and doubles partner Victor Melo are No. 23 as a duo. In 2009, Lobo standout Johnny Parkes, who is now a volunteer student coach with the Lobos, defeated Blue Raider senior Robert McKenzie in the round of 64 NCAA singles tournament.

Denver comes into the weekend with a 4-0 record, including wins over No. 56 Radford and No. 65 Nebraska. The Pioneers did not make the NCAA tournament in 2009, finishing with a 10-11 record. UNM is 23-15 all-time against Denver and defeated them 5-2 in 2008 in Colorado.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
UNM lost three key seniors in Johnny Parkes, Miles Bugby, and Graeme Kassautzki, and returns just one upperclassmen in junior Joe Wood. The Lobos welcome back a quartet of sophomores who saw plenty of action in 2008-09 in Ben Dunbar, Phil Anderson, Carl Ho and Matt Neeld. Jadon Phillips and Conor Berg are UNM’s newest additions, freshmen who were top junior players in their respective regions of the country as high school seniors.  Ho ranks 16th in the Mountain region while Phillips comes in at No. 20. For a full outlook, visit golobos.com.

LOBOS WIN SEASON OPENER
The Lobos had no problems in their season opener, defeating 58th-ranked Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 7-0. The Lobos won eight of nine matches. Between the home-opener and the fall season, five Lobos have nine wins or more in singles: Phil Anderson (9-6), Conor Berg (9-5), Carl Ho (10-4), Jadon Phillips (10-5) and Joe Wood (9-5).

2008-09 SEASON RECAP QUICK HITS
• 20-6 finish, second season with 20 wins
• Best winning percentage since the 1984 season
• Best start through 17 matches (15-2) since 1984
• Ranked in the Top 45 nationally all season, including at a season-high No. 32, and finished at No.49
• Won three matches to clinch the Mountain West Conference tournament championship
• First NCAA team appearance since 2004 and 11th overall; Lost to Minnesota, 4-0, in the opening round
• Johnny Parkes: MWC Player of the Year, ITA Regional Senior of the Year; 1-1 at the NCAA Singles Championship; finished career with all-time mark of 97-42, most singles wins by a Lobo
• Head coach Alan Dils earned the MWC Coach of the Year and ITA Mountain Region Coach of the Year honors
• Parkes and Graeme Kassautzki made All-MWC singles team; Parkes and Miles Bugby made All-MWC doubles

SERVING UP A CURE
The University of New Mexico men’s and women’s tennis teams are partnering up with the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association (ALSA) to help in the fight against ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. The tennis teams will coordinate a season-long campaign, Serving Up A Cure, to help raise money for ALS research.
 Serving Up A Cure will allow people to get involved in a couple of different ways. Donors can pledge money per match or per set won for either the men’s or women’s tennis teams. Forms to make donations and instructions for submitting them can be found at GOLOBOS.com on either the men’s or women’s tennis page.
 ALS affects adults of all ages, sexes and races. Every 90 minutes someone is diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and every 90 minutes someone dies from this disease. There is no known cause or cure and the cost for an ALS patient is $200,000 per year.
 Please help the men’s and women’s tennis teams fight against ALS. For more information contact Roy Cañada at rcanada@unm.edu or at 925-5780.