Jan. 30, 2009
ITA Kick-Off Weekend Tournament Central
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Nittany Lions men's tennis team (2-1) will be one of 15 schools hosting this year's ITA Kick-Off Weekend beginning on Saturday. Penn State will face No. 21 Oklahoma State with the first serve being at 2 p.m. at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center. Duke will face off with Florida State on Saturday with a 9 a.m. start time.
The winners of the matches will take on each other Sunday, while the losers will square-off Sunday as well. The 15 teams that win two matches at each campus site this weekend will be invited to compete at the ITA Indoor Championships Feb. 13-16 at the Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago.
"As one of 15 sites hosting across the country, this is an exciting event to be hosting," said head coach Todd Doebler. "It will be first time in program history we host a national event and have caliber programs like this coming to Penn State."
All fans are encouraged to attend this weekend with free admission. Additionally, free pizza and special prizes will be given away for the Penn State matches on Saturday and Sunday.
The 44th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions won back-to-back matches in 7-0 victories over St. Bonaventure and Saint Joseph's at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center last weekend. Senior Adam Slagter (Austin, Texas) earned his first singles victory of the 2008-09 season after missing the fall season due to an ankle injury. Freshmen Jason Lee (Sydney, Austrailia) and Chris Hasyn (Lansdale, Pa.) earned their first singles dual match victories of their career. Junior Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) improved to 3-0 this season after earning two victories over the Bonnies and Hawks.
33rd-ranked Duke returns this season under new leadership, with Ramsey Smith taking over as head coach of the program after serving three years on the staff as an assistant coach. Last season, the Devils made their 17th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Duke beat Arizona State in the first round of the tournament in 2008, followed by a second round loss to ACC rival North Carolina. The Devils are 2-0 so far this year, with wins over Elon and Virginia Commonwealth.
No. 21 Oklahoma State heads to Happy Valley seeing their first action of the season. Last year, the Cowboys made it to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys defeated Denver and Tulsa, before losing to USC in the round of 16.
The 18th-ranked Seminoles finished 21-6 last year, including a 10-3 record in the ACC. Florida State advanced to the round of 16 in last year's tournament bracket, beating Samford and Southern Alabama, and eventually lost to UCLA, 4-3. This year, the Seminoles are off to a 3-2 start, including wins over Tennessee Tech and Florida Atlantic.
Following this weekend, Penn State will return to the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center on Saturday, Feb. 7 in a noon matchup with the Virginia Tech Hokies. Last season, the Nittany Lions lost a tough one to the Hokies, 4-3, in Blacksburg, Va. On Sunday, Feb. 8, the Lions will host a double header with Cornell and Lehigh.