Fresno State Athletics
No. 40 Men's Tennis Awaits NCAA Tournament Fate
4/28/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 28, 2003
Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
What's Coming Up
No. 40 Fresno State (17-8) returns home this week to prepare for what it hopes will be a place in the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs lost in the WAC Tournament semifinals to SMU and will await word from the NCAA selection committee on whether the team's resume warrants a place in the tournament. The selection show is Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN News and will be viewed by Fresno State at The Elbow Room.
What Just Happened
The third-seeded Bulldogs suffered a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to SMU in the semifinals of the WAC Tournament in Boise, Idaho. It was yet another classic match between the Fresno State and the Mustangs, who have now played in the conference championships four times in the last five years. All four of those matches have been decided by a tiebreaker in the third set in the final match. Alex Rudzinksi's 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) win at No. 4 singles over Marc Schaerer was the clincher for second-seeded SMU.
Almada, Suta, Modoc Receive All-WAC Honors
Hector Almada, Stefan Suta and Sergiu Modoc all were honored on the All-WAC team, announced at the conclusion of the conference tournament last weekend. Almada and Modoc, currently ranked 20th in the nation, were named first-team all-league in doubles. The duo has racked up a 15-4 record this year playing all but one match at No. 1 doubles. Suta, currently 29-10 (16-9 dual), and Almada were both selected to the All-WAC's second team in singles. Almada is one of four Bulldogs who have won 20 matches this year.
Suta on the Doorstep of History
Stefan Suta's impressive 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 6-4 over 75th-ranked Johan Brunstrom of SMU was his 29th singles victory of the season and moved him on the cusp of something few Bulldogs have ever accomplished. With one more win, Suta would become just the third Fresno State player ever to win at least 30 singles matches. The 30-win club is currently comprised of Ryan Juinio, who won 33 in 1993-94, and Fredrik Giers, who notched 38 victories in 1995-96.
Krohn Continues to Roll
Alex Krohn's play has picked up considerably at the end of the season. After dropping out of the singles lineup in late February, the junior re-entered the lineup in late March and has been perfect, winning 10 consecutive matches. Krohn is currently 19-9 (13-4 dual) on the season.
Players Mentioned
