Thursday, 01/12/2012

The USC men's tennis team tunes up for its pursuit of a fourth straight NCAA champion with a little individual action to open up the spring season. The Trojans will pack the house at the Sherwood Collegiate Cup this week from Jan. 13-16 in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Five of the top eight seeds in the singles draw are held by Trojans, led by senior Steve Johnson, who returns to collegiate play for the first time since winning the 2011 NCAA Singles Championship after spending the fall as an amateur on the pro circuit. In all, 10 USC players are in the singles draw, splitting into five teams to represent the Trojans in the doubles field. USC's influx of youth will be on display across the board, with Johnson and Daniel Nguyen the only Trojan seniors leading eight USC underclassmen in the draw.

SHERWOOD SINGLES SCENE
Top-seeded Steve Johnson leads a group of 10 Trojans in the 32-player singles bracket at this year's Sherwood Cup. USC is joined by players from UCLA, Baylor and Stanford for the first collegiate action of 2012. Sophomore Ray Sarmiento is the No. 2 seed behind Johnson, with senior Daniel Nguyen slotted at No. 3. Freshman Yannick Hanfmann picks up the No. 7 seed, and sophomore Emilio Gomez sits at No. 8. The rest of the Trojan field includes sophomore Corey Smith along with four more freshmen. Jonny Wang and Eric Johnson both got in competition as Trojans in the fall, while newcomers Robert Quiroz and Jordi Vives will see their first collegiate action as freshman spring additions to the Trojan roster.
 
DOUBLING UP AT SHERWOOD
The 10-man force of Trojans at Sherwood will split into five doubles teams, led by No. 2 seeded Yannick Hanfmann / Steve Johnson, who will be making their debut as a team this week. They have two Trojan teams on their half of the draw, with a potential quarterfinal clash against Corey Smith / Jonny Wang, and a possible semifinal matchup with Eric Johnson / Jordi Vives. The relatively veteran doubles duo waiting on the other side is Daniel Nguyen / Ray Sarmiento, who went 4-1 together at the NCAA Team Tournament last year en route to USC's third straight team title. And another intriguing matchup also takes shape in the form of cousins Emilio Gomez and Roberto Quiroz who have competed together on the international scene for Ecuador and now combine forces as Trojan teammates for the first time.

TROJANS IN THE RANKINGS
The USC men enter 2012 where they left off in 2011 -- at the top of the national rankings for a No. 1 start to a 2012 season that the Trojans hope to finish out on top of for th fourth straight year. ITA Southwest Regional Singles Champion Ray Sarmiento leads the pack with a No. 12 ranking in the nation as he settles into his sophomore season with the Trojans. Senior Daniel Nguyen is next in line at No. 16. The other three spots are filled by more Trojan youth, with freshman Yannick Hanfmann standing tall at No. 33 and sophomore Emilio Gomez at No. 48. Sophomore Michael Grant rounds out the pack at No. 124.

UP NEXT
The first dual matches of the year come next week for the Trojans. The USC men have a double-header set for Jan. 21, hosting LMU at 11 a.m. and UC Santa Barbara at 2:30 p.m. at Marks Stadium.