Men’s Tennis
By Ian McCollum |
Sports Assistant
Tulane was the bane of the Waves as Pepperdine traveled more than 3,000 miles to New Orleans, only to lose 5-2 at the Goldring Tennis Stadium. The Green Wave improved its record to 11-4 while the Waves dropped to 12-7.
In singles action, Pepperdine walked away with only two wins. Senior Scott Doerner faced a tough, though ultimately successful, fight against David Goulet when he posted a 7-6, 6-3 win in the No. 4 spot. Freshman Richard Johnson, playing in the No. 5 position, walked away with the other Pepperdine point when he easily defeated Alberto Sottorcorno, 6-3, 6-3.
While the rest of the team may have lost their matches, Tulane by no means had an easy time of it. Pedro Rico gave No. 11-ranked Michael Kogan a run for his money (6-3, 6-3), as did Calle Hansen and Alex Herrera in their matches against Dmitriy Koch (6-2, 7-6) and Ted Angelinos (6-1, 7-6), respectively.
The Waves did not fare much better in the doubles arena, winning only one of the three matches. The No. 45-ranked duo Herrera and Doerner triumphed over the Green Wave’s Koch and Vasiljevic 8-6 in the No. 2 position.
“I though it was our most disappointing effort of the year,” Head Coach Adam Steinberg said. “The level of play was pretty even, but they wanted it more. I don’t think our energy level and enthusiasm was there … we just didn’t bring it.”
While the team was justifiably disappointed, its morale is up and hope blazes anew. The men’s tennis team is in the final legs of its season with only four more matches before the WCC tournament. Included in those matches are both Harvard and Stanford.
“Harvard is ranked No. 15 in the nation and is an excellent team,” Coach Steinberg said. “It’s a great opportunity for us to prove our mettle. Stanford, likewise. It will be tough because we’ll be going there, plus they are a legendary program. But the guys have had an awesome last few days of practice and I think we’re pretty prepared.”
As for their plans for the WCC title, the Waves won’t be accused of aiming too low.
“Pepperdine has always been at the top of the conference and we expect to win it again this year. Anything else will be a disappointment. We have the best team but on paper but that doesn’t mean much so we have to prove it ,” Coach Steinberg said.
Steinberg’s cautious optimism was not limited to himself.
“Pepperdine has won the WCC more than any other team,” sophomore Scott Doerner said. “I think Pepperdine and San Diego are the only real competition in the WCC…and so far this year we’ve had their measure.”
The Waves will return to the courts on Saturday when they host Harvard at the North Ranch Country Club starting at 1 p.m.
Submitted April 1, 2004