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The Vikings Begin The 2005 Season With High Hopes

The Vikings Begin The 2005 Season With High Hopes
Posted: Sep 08, 2005

Sept. 8, 2005

Contact: Brian Wolff

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SETTING THE SCENE: The men's tennis team hits the courts this weekend for the St. Bonaventure Invite. The Vikings will join St. Bonaventure, Buffalo, Niagara, and Youngstown State for the tournament beginning Friday, Sept. 9 and continuing through Sunday, Sept. 11. The women's team won't begin its season until Sept. 17 at the Akron Invite. Four members of last year's squad will be returning for the men, while the women will welcome back six players, including the reigning Horizon League Player of the Year, Sarah Galon.

PREVIEWING THE MEN'S TEAM: The men are coming off a 10-12 season, but will have the experience of three-time All-Horizon League second team member Jay Tee. Tee, the lone senior on the team, is coming of a 6-10 season, including 5-7 at No. 2 singles. Also back for the Vikings is junior Dan Singer, the only returner to notch double-digit victories. Singer went 10-15 during 2004-05, playing mostly at the No. 5 singles position.

PREVIEWING THE WOMEN'S TEAM:The women's team is coming off its most successful season in over 20 years. The Vikings finished with a 14-12 record, their first winning season since 1983-84. CSU will rely heavily on the singles play of Sarah Galon and Jenn Myers, who in 2004-05 went 17-13 and 16-15 in No.1 singles and No. 2 singles, respectively. The No. 1 and No. 2 doubles teams from a year ago will also be back. Galon and Morgan Ungerott completed the season with a 16-8 record. Last year he No. 2 team of Myers and Christine Vogelgesang were 13-11.

HEAD COACH Brian Etzkin: Beginning his fourth year with the Vikings, Brian Etzkin has the duty as head coach of both the men's and women's tennis programs. Etzkin has shown much progress, especially on the women's side, being named Horizon League Coach of The Year in 2004. Last season, he coached Sarah Galon to Horizon League Player of the Year honors, the first time a Viking tennis player has won the award. On the men's side, he has coached the 2003 Horizon League Newcomer of The Year and players on both the first and second All-Horizon League teams.

ETZKIN ON THE MEN'S TEAM: "The men are getting ready for the tournament this weekend. We will use this opportunity to see where our returners are and how the newcomers do against collegiate competition. This will help us in putting together a lineup for our dual matches. The men will work hard and make sure we are ready for when league play rolls around."

ETZKIN ON THE WOMEN'S TEAM: "After the success of last season we are excited to get this year started. We have a lot of experience with six returners from 2004-05. The players are working hard and preparing for the Akron Invite next weekend. We are also working on putting a lineup together and will see how the returners are playing and what type of role the newcomers will play for us."

HAWAIIAN PUNCH: Last season junior Sarah Galon was the first Vikings' tennis player to win Horizon League Player of The Year. Galon earned the distinction after being named the Horizon League Newcomer of The Year two seasons ago. She recorded a 6-1 mark in both No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles in Horizon League play while notching a 17-12 singles mark and a 16-8 doubles record on the season. She was the team leader in singles wins thanks in part to nine victories in her last 23 matches in 2004-05.

TEEING OFF: A three-time All-Horizon League second team selection, senior Jay Tee begins his fourth season as a member of the Vikings. Tee ended last season with a 6-10 singles record, spending most of the time at No. 2 singles. Tee also finished the year with a 7-6 doubles record, playing with three different partners over the course of the season. When he is not on the court, Tee serves as president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. The committee is presently coordinating a campus-wide effort to supply relief to those who were affected in the Gulf area by Hurricane Katrina.

DOUBLE TIME: The No. 1 and No. 2 doubles teams for the Vikings return this season after posting a combined 29-19 record in 2004-05. The No. 1 team of Sarah Galon and Morgan Ungerott went 16-8, including three stretches where they won four or more matches in a row. They won five in a row from Feb. 25 through March 14. The No. 2 doubles unit of Jenn Myers and Christine Vogelgesang went 13-11 with a streak of five in a row during the same period.

WINNING WITHOUT WINN: The Vikings lost two-time All-Horizon League first team member Eric Winn to graduation following the 2004-05 season, forcing the team to find a new No. 1 singles and doubles player. Winn finished with an 11-15 singles record last year along with a 12-14 mark in doubles play. For his career he finished with 39 singles wins and 43 victories in doubles.

UP NEXT: The men will be off for close to two weeks before facing Duquesne on Friday, Sept. 23. The women will travel south to Akron for the Akron Invite from Friday through Sunday (Sept. 16-18).