2008 Woodie Awards
Men's tennis headed to NCAA Tournament
Brian Wright
Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: Sports
The men's tennis team's most recent road trip saw The Seawolves make the trek to Hawaii for three matches. Though they contended strongly against their formidable opponents, the Seawolves dropped all three matches.
The first match of the trip was a rematch against Hawaii-Hilo, a team the Seawolves beat on Feb. 18 when Hilo was ranked 36th in the nation. This time, it was Hawaii-Hilo that prevailed, winning 7-2. And while the team went to Hawaii for a series of big matches, they were will able to enjoy the sunshine of the Aloha State.
"It was a good trip," said senior Andy Muesse. "We competed well against some highly ranked teams and got to spend some time down on the beach."
Muesse did much more than hang out at the Waikiki beach. He picked up a gritty win in thrilling tiebreaker fashion. Muesse defeated Henrik Bode of #10 ranked Hawaii Pacific 6-4, 4-6, (10-2). The victory put Muesse at 9-5 for the season and a perfect 6-0 in Division II competition. Muesse is now ranked number 30 in the nation. Led by Muesse, the Seawolves nearly pulled off the upset, yet fell short 4-5 to HPU.
The team looked relaxed before practice, as Connor Olson led the warm up routine. Olson brought his best game to Hawaii and specifically against Hawaii BYU, winning his singles match at the number two spot, as well as his doubles match with partner Jeff Stollberg.
The Seawolves fought hard, but lost to Hawaii BYU 7-2. "They had a guy that had ATP points and earned money on tour," said Muesse. That player was Rong Ma, who beat Muesse in another hard fought tiebreaker 4-6, 6-0, (12-10).
Sonoma's Quan Vu has won some critical matches to help his team this year, including a win against HPU, where Vu rallied back to win in a tiebreaker. This team stays together in spite of competing with each other for a chance to play.
"These guys are all out here to see who will play and who will be on the traveling roster," said coach Steve Cunningham. "They support each other no matter what and spend time with each other off the court. This team gets along as well as any team I've had."
Team chemistry equated to strong play more than ever in the victory against Hawaii-Hilo back on Feb. 18.
All of SSU's players are from California and, like most Seawolf athletes, are not on scholarships. The Seawolves will make the NCAA tournament for the third year in a row and compete against teams that recruit players from around the world.
The Hawaii trip proved the Seawolves are not afraid of ranked teams and gladly take on the role of the underdog. The Seawolves will enter the NCAA tournament as the number four seed and will most likely see either UC San Diego or Hawaii Pacific.
The first match of the trip was a rematch against Hawaii-Hilo, a team the Seawolves beat on Feb. 18 when Hilo was ranked 36th in the nation. This time, it was Hawaii-Hilo that prevailed, winning 7-2. And while the team went to Hawaii for a series of big matches, they were will able to enjoy the sunshine of the Aloha State.
"It was a good trip," said senior Andy Muesse. "We competed well against some highly ranked teams and got to spend some time down on the beach."
Muesse did much more than hang out at the Waikiki beach. He picked up a gritty win in thrilling tiebreaker fashion. Muesse defeated Henrik Bode of #10 ranked Hawaii Pacific 6-4, 4-6, (10-2). The victory put Muesse at 9-5 for the season and a perfect 6-0 in Division II competition. Muesse is now ranked number 30 in the nation. Led by Muesse, the Seawolves nearly pulled off the upset, yet fell short 4-5 to HPU.
The team looked relaxed before practice, as Connor Olson led the warm up routine. Olson brought his best game to Hawaii and specifically against Hawaii BYU, winning his singles match at the number two spot, as well as his doubles match with partner Jeff Stollberg.
The Seawolves fought hard, but lost to Hawaii BYU 7-2. "They had a guy that had ATP points and earned money on tour," said Muesse. That player was Rong Ma, who beat Muesse in another hard fought tiebreaker 4-6, 6-0, (12-10).
Sonoma's Quan Vu has won some critical matches to help his team this year, including a win against HPU, where Vu rallied back to win in a tiebreaker. This team stays together in spite of competing with each other for a chance to play.
"These guys are all out here to see who will play and who will be on the traveling roster," said coach Steve Cunningham. "They support each other no matter what and spend time with each other off the court. This team gets along as well as any team I've had."
Team chemistry equated to strong play more than ever in the victory against Hawaii-Hilo back on Feb. 18.
All of SSU's players are from California and, like most Seawolf athletes, are not on scholarships. The Seawolves will make the NCAA tournament for the third year in a row and compete against teams that recruit players from around the world.
The Hawaii trip proved the Seawolves are not afraid of ranked teams and gladly take on the role of the underdog. The Seawolves will enter the NCAA tournament as the number four seed and will most likely see either UC San Diego or Hawaii Pacific.
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