March 15, 2004
Up Next:The No. 25 Arizona men's tennis team (8-6, 0-2) returns home after a short road trip to Los Angeles, Calif. Arizona will host Ball State, Saturday, March 20, and Clemson, Sunday, March 21. As always, both matches will be held on the campus of the University of Arizona at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center.
Ball State: The Cardinals enter the match with an overall record of 5-9 and 0-0 in the Mid-American Conference. The Cardinals have been on a six-match losing streak, which included three losses at the HEB College Team Championships. As a team, Ball State is ranked No. 73, after dropping eight spots from the fourth ranking period.
Clemson: The Tigers have earned an overall record of 16-5 and 1-2 in the ACC this spring. Their last outing came against Maryland, where the Tigers dropped the Terps, 7-0. During the match, Clemson did not drop a set, with the closest set being a battle for the second set on court 6. Clemson won the set, 7-6. Clemson's only common opponent with Arizon is UCLA and fell, 7-0, to the Bruins. Individually for the Tigers, Jarmaine Jenkins leads the team with his No. 77 ranking. As a team Clemson occupies the No. 41 position, while starting in the No. 26 spot.
Series History: Both Ball State and Clemson are relatively new to the Wildcats. Arizona has split the first two competitions against Ball State, while Arizona is 1-2 against Clemson.
Last Up: Arizona traveled to Los Angeles, Calif., to take on the No. 8 ranked Bruins of UCLA and No. 4 USC. On March 12, Arizona traveled to Westwood to face the Bruins. The Wildcats did not get the early start that has been the keystone to the team's success this season. After losing the doubles point, Arizona fell in all six singles matches giving UCLA the, 7-0, victory. The next day on March 21, Arizona traveled downtown to face the No. 4 USC. Looking to improve on the previous day's performance, Arizona once again fell behind early and lost the doubles point. In singles play, sophomore Roger Matalonga earned a big victory on court one when he defeated the No. 25 Adriano Biasella, 6-2, 6-0. The Wildcats lost the other five matches, which gave USC the win, 6-1.
Ranked Cats: The Arizona Wildcats exit the fifth ranking period in the No. 25 spot, as administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. Arizona gained nine spots this week after its victory over San Diego, 6-1, March 7. It's Arizona's first appearance in the top 25 since 1996, when the Wildcats finished the spring at No. 17.
Stacked Pac: Arizona once again is competing against several of the top programs in the nation this spring. All eight of the participating Pac-10 schools find themselves ranked by the ITA.
Pac-10 Rankings
4. USC
5. Stanford
8. UCLA
22. Arizona State
25. Arizona
26. Washington
29. California
50. Oregon
Strength of Schedule: Along with the ever-daunting task of competing in the Pac-10, Arizona will face eight other ranked opponents during its non-conference schedule. Rice leads the way with its No. 6 ranking.
9 of 12: As if the daunting task of earning your first and second all-time victories were not enough of a task against the Los Angeles schools, Arizona had to face nine ranked individuals. No. 6 Tobias Clemens of UCLA led the way for the individual player and teammates Alberto Francis and Kris Kwinta own the No. 18 spot, which paced the three doubles teams.
Leading the Cats: With a 17-7 overall record and an 11-3 spring record, Roger Matalonga has led the Cats through the spring. Matalonga moved into the No. 1 spot for the first time against USD where he defeated No. 84 Pongsrikul, 6-1, 6-4 and a, 6-2, 6-0, victory over No. 25 Adriano Briasella of USC.
Double the Trouble: Arizona has enjoyed the early lead in 10 of the 14 matches it has played in this spring. Arizona failed to win the doubles point against, USC and Stanford.
Ahead Early: When off to a 1-0 lead after the doubles point, Arizona is 9-1 this spring. Against UCLA on Feb. 22, Arizona won the battle of the doubles point, but lost the war, 4-3, to the Bruins.
Carrying Momentum: This spring, Arizona has a cumulative doubles record of 27-9, which is an average of two wins per match. Arizona has been able to continue its momentum past the doubles point and translate it into wins in the singles matches. The tandem of Roger Matalonga and Colin O'Grady have earned a 10-1 record in doubles and have earned singles records of 10-2 and 7-4, respectively, this spring.
10 Wins: Five of the top-six men have earned 10 wins for the season. Sophomore Roger Matalonga leads the team with his 17 wins, while sophomore Daniel Andrus, senior Tom Lloyd and Colin O'Grady has 13 each. Paul Warkentin rounds out the top five with 11 wins.
STUDENT-Athletes: Recently four men were recognized for their accomplishments off the court by earning the Mary Roby Academic Achievement Award. Senior Carl Hagman leads the way with his fourth-straight award, while senior Tom Lloyd earned his second, and junior Colin O'Grady and sophomore Nate Cochrane each earned their first honor.
