Fresno State Athletics
Men's Tennis Wraps Up 2000-2001 Season
6/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
June 2, 2001
With three freshmen and a senior transfer added to the mix and All-American senior Peter Luczak not joining the squad until February, many wondered how the 2000-2001 men's tennis team would fare. Not to mention the fact that Fresno State would embark on a tough three-match road trip to California, Stanford and USC after the season opener in February. Or that perennial national powers Texas and Illinois were scheduled to make appearances at the Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center during the first half of the season.
However, the Bulldogs bounced back from some early season struggles and managed to finish with an 18-9 overall mark and a final national ranking of No. 24. Not bad for a team that featured only three returning starters from last season's record-setting 24-5 campaign.
"It was just a great season on many fronts," said Bulldog head coach Michael Hegarty, who is now 76-33 in his four-year tenure at Fresno State. "If we can start out next season the way we closed out this year, we've got a chance to be a real force. I'm very proud of this team and excited about the possibilities for next year."
Fresno State began to show flashes of potential in the fall tournament season. The Bulldogs competed in the Charles Fluitt Invitational, Bulldog Tennis Classic and ITA Regional Championships in preparation for the spring. Senior David Mullins was the key contributor for the Bulldogs during the fall season, winning the Wathen/Hancock Bulldog Classic and advancing to the round of 16 in singles at the ITA Regional Championships. His 11-3 singles mark during the fall paced the Bulldogs, who were continually beginning to develop team chemistry. Junior Nick Fustar lost his four matches but finished strongly, advancing to the quarterfinals of the ITA Regional singles tournament. Senior transfer Sean Cooper, along with freshmen Alex Menichini and Alex Krohn competed well in all three tournaments, as well.
A brutal schedule loomed during the first half of the season. The Bulldogs were only 4-4 after their first eight matches, but three of their first four losses were 4-3 defeats at the hands of Texas, Baylor and Illinois- all ranked in the top-20 at the time. Such losses were common occurrences throughout the year, as the Bulldogs were 5-5 in matches decided by a 4-3 score and 6-9 against top-45 programs.
Following a runner-up finish at the prestigious Blue-Gray Classic in March, Fresno State caught fire. With just ten matches remaining on the regular season schedule, the Bulldogs recorded wins in eight of the ten contests (the only losses coming in the form of 4-3 defeats to No. 16 Pepperdine and No. 13 South Alabama).
Fresno State entered the postseason 15-7 and had the luxury of hosting the WAC Tournament. The Bulldogs blanked Hawaii 4-0 in the first round and upset SMU 4-3 in the semifinals before falling to TCU 4-2 in the championship match.
The Bulldogs were then invited to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth consecutive season and shipped off to a regional in Provo, Utah. Fresno State, tabbed as the region's No.17-32 seed, clipped ACC Tournament champion Wake Forest 4-3 in the first round to set up a rematch with California, the tournament's No. 14 overall seed, in the second round with a berth in the Sweet 16 on the line. Fresno State had already defeated the Golden Bears 5-2 on the road earlier in the year and entered the second round match having won seven of their last eight matches. However, California upended the Bulldogs 4-2 this time, ultimately ending Fresno State's season. The loss marked the second year in a row that the Bulldogs were eliminated by a Pac-10 school in the second round of the NCAA Tournament (Fresno State suffered a 4-1 defeat to USC last season).
Senior All-American Peter Luczak enjoyed the best season of his career, finishing with a 27-1 overall singles mark. The All-WAC Singles first team selection finished ranked No. 6 nationally, and was named the ITA National Senior Player of the Year. Prior to suffering his only loss of the season at the NCAA Singles Championships, he had been the only undefeated player in the nation. He led the team in wins and became Fresno State's career singles leader with his 6-2, 6-4 win against SMU's Genius Chidzikwe in the WAC Tournament, eclipsing the previous all-time victory total of 105, held by Bryan Juinio (1992-1996). Luczak, who finished his career with a 109-35 overall mark, also became the first player in Fresno State men's tennis history to earn All-American status in singles and doubles in the same season (he and Mullins finished with a 19-3 overall record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Doubles Championships).
"Peter is destined to be top-100 in the world as a professional player and is headed there soon," Hegarty said of Luczak, who took the fall season off to compete in satellite and challenger tournaments.
Junior Nick Fustar and Sean Cooper were key contributors to the Bulldog attack, playing anywhere from Nos.2-5 in the Bulldog lineup. Fustar compiled an 18-18 overall singles mark, while Cooper finished 17-14. The duo also finished ranked No. 40 as a doubles team, posting a 17-6 overall mark as the Bulldog's No. 2 team.
"Nick made incredible strides all year in singles and doubles, and Sean provided the emotional spark that every top-25 team needs," explained Hegarty. "Both players seemed to energize the whole team on a regular basis."
Another pleasant surprise was the development of freshman Alex Menichini. The lefty finished second on the team in singles wins, compiling a 23-11 overall mark. He won eight of his first ten dual matches, and won his individual singles match in 17 of the 18 Bulldog victories. Fellow first-year netter Alex Krohn finished 17-16 in singles, playing mainly at the No. 6 position. He and Menichini had a respectable first season as Fresno State's No. 3 doubles team, posting an 11-12 overall record.
"Menichini showed that he is going to be a dominant college force and a potential All-American," Hegarty said. "Krohn will be the ultimate team player and is already respected as a team leader."
Mullins, who was slowed by back problems for much of the season, finished with a 19-15 singles mark after a tremendous fall showing. He and Luczak teamed to give the Bulldog's one of the nation's top doubles teams, as the duo finished ranked No. 9 and had won 18 straight matches before their second round loss at the NCAA Doubles Championships.
