Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Opens Season With Pair of Sunday Duals
1/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Jan. 16, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Coming off a strong fall season in which the team posted a 47-30 singles record overall, Northwestern is set to kick off the spring dual match season Sunday afternoon at Combe Tennis Center by hosting Butler and the University of Chicago.
In the first ITA rankings of the spring season, senior Marc Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga./University of Nebraska - Independent Study H.S.) and sophomore Peter Rispoli (Naples, Fla./St. Stephen's (Texas)) are ranked No. 26 and No. 29 in the Midwest, respectively. Northwestern is one of only seven schools with more than one player represented in the regional rankings.
The Wildcats had a strong fall season, led by graduate student Alexander Thams (Stockholm, Sweden/Enskilda Gymnasiet). Thams posted an 8-2 record in singles, which included a run to the Round of 16 at the Big Ten Singles Championship and the title of the Milwaukee Tennis Classic.
Dwyer also played well during the fall with a semifinal berth in the Wildcat Fall Invitational and two wins at the Big Ten Singles Championship.
The pair of Alex Sanborn (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid) and Joshua Graves (Milwaukee, Wis./Nicolet) was undefeated in the fall with two victories at the Milwaukee Tennis Classic.
Graves and Eric Spector (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) started their freshman campaigns in impressive fashion, posting singles records of 6-3 and 5-2, respectively.
The 'Cats kick things off Sunday against the Butler Bulldogs in the season opener for both teams at 2 p.m. Butler, a perennial Horizon League contender, enters after posting a 28-55 overall singles record in its fall campaign.
Northwestern then will face the University of Chicago at 7 p.m. The Maroons are ranked No. 25 in Division III with a 0-1 record on the season after suffering a 7-0 loss to DePaul in their dual-match opener last weekend.
"We are looking forward to playing two quality teams in Butler and Chicago," said head coach Arvid Swan. "Our players are excited to start the dual match season."
