< Y , ; 14A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 19, 1996 'M' women's tennis faces top foes in opening tourney - 's5 . T rr } z -5 5; -' l t } i c i k 3l _ u N :s " y y : , - r _ 5 1 G N h f , 3 a 7 "-. n = " t tir t s l ate 'k s ;' s . E i rn 6 e - ............... my Uhl r _ 3 5 4 5 T - + Nam k 71 c ,1 a! c 41 "Ass By Nita Srivastava For the Daily Senior Sarah Cyganiak and junior Sora Moon will lead the Michigan women's tennis team as the Wolverines begin their season at the William & Mary Invitational in Williamsburg, Va., tomorrow. After a good first week of prac- tice, the Wolverines are ready to kick off the season with the three-day tournament. "All of us are playing really well," sophomore Tumeka Harris said. "We have a lot of depth this year, so we're going to do pretty well as a group." Five of the eight teams competing in this weekend's invitational fin- ished in the top 20 in the 1996 national rankings. Duke led the way with a No. 3 ranking, followed by No. 6 Notre Dame, No. I I Wake Forest, No. 16 William & Mary and No. 17 Tennessee. Syracuse, Maryland and Michigan round out the field. Although the Wolverines did not finish in the top 20, they say they are ready to take on top-caliber competi- tion. "We're starting at a pretty high level of play, but it's a great opportu- nity for us to play the best players in the country," Michigan coach Bitsy Ritt said. Harris added, "All the teams are going to be tough, but everyone is really motivated." With good chemistry among the teammates, and a lot of motivation, the Wolverines expect to do very well this weekend. "I'm not worried about any of it," Ritt said. "I think we'll do well. We're really excited to get started." This first tournament will benefit the four freshmen on the team, as they make the transition from high school to college tennis. "This will be a real eye-opener for our freshmen to see what we can really aspire to," Ritt said. The experience of the older play- ers on the team can aid the freshmen. The upperclassmen will be able to give good insight as to the strengths . and weaknesses of the other players in the tournament. "We are definitely ready for it," said freshman Brooke Hart. With three days of solid tennis. seven of the eight Wolverines will have a chance to participate in the tournament. Junior Jen Boylan, who had knee surgery during the off season, is sit- ting out. With four singles pools and two doubles pools, every player is guar- anteed matches. There is even a chance tha Michigan teammates could play against each other if the tournament brackets work out that way. FILE PHOTO/Daily The Michigan women's tennis team Will face some top-caliber competition when it competes in the William & Mary invitational this weekend at Williamsburg, Va. Blue men netters hope fountain of youth will help defend crown. By Andy Latack For the Daily The Michigan men's tennis team is hoping youth will be served in the upcoming season. The Wolverines hope the trend will begin tomorrow, when freshmen John Long, Brad McFarlane and Matt Wright play in the Tom Fallon Invitational in South Bend, Ind. Michigan, last year's Big Ten champions, fosters a team without a single senior and will rely heavily upon young players like Long. McFarlane and Wright during the season. After this weekend, Michigan coach Brian Eisner will have an idea of just how ready the youngsters are to help the Wolverines defend their title. They will face players from schools all over the country at the three-day event, including Colorado, Clemson and tournament host Notre Dame. "We want to evaluate where they are and see how they stack up "Wewa freshman what coll is all aboi Michigan men' against some of the top players, both in the Midwest and from all over the country," assistant coach Dan Goldberg said. E i s n e r elected to nt the use the invi- tational as an to see individual t event, as ege tennis opposed tog team tourna- N ment. An -Brian Eisner indlividua l e v e n t 's tennis coach re q u i r e s three or less players and does not count toward the team's overall record. "What I tried to do is analyze what's best for the team," Eisner said. "In the fall, I would like S have all of the players playing, but I didn't want to use up a team event." Teams are limited to 25 events. and matches occurring before Jan. 1 do not count in NCAA rankings. The freshmen have the chance to turn some heads in South Bend, given their past accomplishments. McFarlane was the top-ranked under-18 singles player in Canada and Wright, from Wichita, Kat. was undefeated his entire high school career. Long, an Ann Arbor native, won all-state honors his junior and senior years en route to winning two Michigan state cham- pionships. But the young players know that their high school days are long gone, and they face a huge adjust- ment to the college ranks. "It's my first college tournamen* Long said. "I want to get accus- tomed to the new level of play, because it's a big step- up from juniors. I want to see where I am and where the team is." Eisner agrees that the tournament will serve as a learning experience. "We want the freshmen to see what college tennis is all about. It's a nice way to get things started f; us," Eisner said. k.- : {: c rt , '. i .:.: :^: nr . r ; r y . ' iV:d" S TT Y Y SL y kj }y " i , 3 ,u +l r 1 h TS Y h t { 'yY s ti + k 1z r ; y ...r U_ .. 5 ,. ud : k'.v Ji yam - s r 4 -_ :-.. r 5 ,,a , t rte: T T- ; ''.X :4x; ,. _... 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