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September 7, 2007 > Sports > New teammates see loads of potential, not uncertainty, in lineup

New teammates see loads of potential, not uncertainty, in lineup

By Casey Michel | Thresher Editorial Staff

Collegiate tennis is a conundrum. It is an individual sport wrapped in a team mentality. There is no interaction between teammates, only between foes, and yet the athletes play with only one goal in mind: to make sure the team wins.

This mindset is no different for the men’s tennis team. That is why there was no celebration to be found after last year’s season-ending 4-1 loss to Texas A&M University in the NCAA Tournament. Nor was there any jubilation after a hard-fought defeat in the Conference USA Tournament final at the hands of University of Tulsa.

Fortunately, this team has a short memory. Because of this, and the lack of team-oriented dual matches in the fall season, this is why assistant coach Efe Ustundag (Baker ‘99) said he is not too worried about last year’s finish weighing on the minds of his players.

“Because the first semester is the individual season, it seems like it’s not on anybody’s mind right now,” he said. “I’m sure once the spring season rolls around, then we might start thinking about how we ended up. But now I don’t think it’s in anybody’s mind. They’ve got short-term memory, so we can concentrate on the task at hand right now.”

The Owls, who finished last season ranked 30th in the nation, start the season next Friday at the Courtyard by Rice Invite, held at Jake Hess Stadium. The Invite, which starts at 9 a.m. and will last until mid-afternoon, features players from Southern Methodist University, Louisiana State University and Tulsa.

Rice’s lineup for the Invite has yet to be set. An influx of newcomers, in addition to key departures, makes this year’s lineup the most pertinent question facing the squad.

“Certainly a couple of the guys will step up more,” Ustundag said. “[But] I don’t think it’s fair to peg somebody as the number one player in August or September … but I don’t want anyone to think that they don’t have a shot at a top position.”

With Ben Harknett (Wiess ‘07) now gone, the No. 1 spot is up for grabs. More than likely, that spot will go to one of the three returning seniors on the team. Senior Ralph Knupfer, who was ranked as high as No. 95 in the country individually last year, returns to try to erase his defeat against Tulsa last year, which clinched the Golden Hurricane’s victory. Knupfer finished the season playing at the No. 2 position last year behind Harknett, so will have a good shot at claiming the No. 1 position.

Another returning senior, Filip Zivojinovic, looks to remain healthy in his final year after finishing last season hampered by a bad back. The third senior, Hoony Shin, showed signs of improvement toward the end of the 2007 spring season, and should be a factor at the bottom of the ladder.

Other Owls competing for some of the top six spots should be juniors Christoph Mueller and Tobias Scheil, and sophomore Dennis Polyakov. Mueller proved to be biggest surprise player last year, posting a team best 17-4 record in singles play.

Oddly enough, Mueller was never ranked nationally, even though two of his wins were against ranked opponents. Scheil, who transferred to Rice from the University of Colorado before last season and won five of his last seven matches, will start the season on crutches. He had foot surgery earlier this week and should be out for about six weeks. But when he returns, the Owls will look to Scheil to provide consistency in the middle of the lineup. And Polyakov, a sophomore, will be looking to sharpen his skills in order to challenge for a starting spot.

The wild card, as is often true in most walks of life, will be the newcomers. Redshirt freshman Vishnu Rajam, who, at 6’7”, towers over his teammates, will also vie for a starting spot. But he must work on his footwork before he can claim a spot for his own. Sophomore transfer Chong Wang, a native Houstonian, recently arrived at Rice from the University of Southern California where he went 14-8 in dual matches and helped the then-ninth-ranked Trojans to the NCAA quarterfinals.

But the most intriguing newcomer may be redshirt freshman Bruno Rosa. The Brazilian native drew much attention last spring when he beat a player ranked 115th in the world in a clay-court tournament. Ustundag says Rosa, who was forced to sit out last season because he began school too late, is one of the most heralded recruits in Rice’s history.

“He’s got a lot of really, really good credentials,” Ustundag said. “He’s probably, on paper, one of our best recruits ever.”

Rosa should vie for the top spot on the ladder, and could potentially help the Owls in doubles as well. The team experimented with more than a few doubles partners last year, but will return with only one pairing intact: Scheil and Knupfer. However, Ustundag said he’s not worried about trying to find two more teams to round out the lineup.

“For as much of the experimenting we did and the partners we ended up switching around, [doubles] wasn’t too much of a problem for us,” he said. “I feel that we’ve got good enough players to make some good combinations where we’ll be competitive.”

If the Owls can find suitable pairings, then they should be able to manage their way through a tough schedule. Although the fall is not terribly tough, filled mainly with tournaments, the spring season sees perennially ranked University of Arizona, University of Miami, University of Texas, Florida State University, LSU and Texas A&M visit Jake Hess. As if that were not enough, the team must also travel to face the University of North Carolina, the College of William and Mary, and the University of California-Los Angeles.

Although this schedule may look daunting, the players look at it with excitement, knowing that they have the potential to have a spectacular season.

“As a team, I want to reach the NCAA’s this year,” Knupfer said. “I think we have the potential. We’ve had the potential all the years I’ve been here. … I just want to play the best I can so we can reach our goal as a team.”

End of article

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