Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Begin Dual Schedule in Utah
1/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Jan. 14, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill.--Northwestern's men's tennis team kicks off its 2004 dual slate in Salt Lake City, Utah with a match against Weber State at 6 p.m. (Central) Friday and a match against Utah at 6 p.m. Saturday.
Junior Chuck Perrin (Atlanta, Ga./The Walker School), coming off a 2003 campaign in which he was part of the 10th-ranked doubles duo in the nation with former Wildcat Jackie Jenkins, has set the table for a strong singles season. Perrin went 11-5 in singles play last fall, advancing to the consolation final of the adidas Invitational and the Big Ten Singles Championship.
Junior Tommy Hanus (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) has continued to be one of Northwestern's top players, compiling a 6-4 fall record and advancing to the Round of 16 at the adidas Invitational, the ITA Midwest Championships and the Big Ten Singles Championship. Senior captain Ahmed Wahla (Lahore, Pakistan/Lahore American School) also had success in the fall, earning a 5-2 singles mark with an undefeated run through the Boilermaker Invitational.
"Chuck, Tommy and Ahmed represent our most experienced lettermen, and they are certainly team leaders going into the season," said head coach Paul Torricelli. "We are really anxious to get the team into dual match competition."
Torricelli's large class of incomers has not waited to make an impact. Freshmen Christian Tempke (Wentorf, Germany/Gymnasium Lohbr?gge) and Willy Lock (Lima, Peru/Markham College), for instance, had quick collegiate starts at the Big Ten Singles Championship. Lock won the 7-9 draw of the tournament while Tempke advanced to the quarterfinal round.
The Wildcats' match with Weber State will be the schools' first meeting in 23 years. Northwestern beat the Big Sky Conference's Wildcats 7-1 in 1981--before any of the current NU players were born--in their only encounter. Weber State is led by junior Jonathan Engelbrect, who put together a 9-5 singles campaign last year.
Utah finished the 2003 season with an overall record of 12-14. Leading the Utes is senior Roeland Brateanu, who played at the Nos. 1 and 2 spots and finished with a 14-21 record. Sophomore Nick Coutts posted a 15-11 record during his freshman year.
"We look forward to playing Weber State and Utah," said Torricelli. "This is our first trip to Salt Lake City. Anytime one plays an unfamiliar team, one can expect a challenge and a tough match."
