Fresno State Athletics
Bulldogs Head to UNLV on Sunday
2/16/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Feb. 16, 2007
Fresno State Heads to Las Vegas
Fresno State heads to Las Vegas on Sunday, Feb. 18, for an 11 a.m. match with UNLV. The Rebels are 2-4 in the 2007 dual match season. Fresno State is 12-2 all-time against the Rebels, including a 6-1 win last year in the Wathen Tennis Center.
Last Week's Results
The Bulldogs lost 5-2 to then-No. 15 USC on Feb. 9 in Los Angeles. Fresno State's two points came in singles where senior Jakub Cech defeated Dejan Cvetkovic in the third-set tiebreaker. Freshman Tejesvi Veerepalli won his fourth straight, beating Garret Snyder in straight sets at the No. 5 spot.
Bulldogs Host Arkansas, Pacific Next Week
Next week the Bulldogs will back at home in the comforts of the Wathen Tennis Center. The team has had its last two home matches cancelled due to rain. So, next week the `Dogs will be back in action when they host Arkansas on Feb. 23 and Pacific in a doubleheader on Feb. 25.
Rainouts and Rescheduling
The `Dogs have had two home matches rained out already this year. The first was on Jan. 28 against Nebraska, while the second was against defending national champion and 10th-ranked Pepperdine. Despite the cancellation of the two matches, the Bulldogs will attempt to reschedule the contests for a later date.
Bulldogs in the Rankings
Senior Jakub Cech is currently ranked No. 26 in the nation. After a brilliant fall season in which Cech won the ITA Northwest Regional singles title, the senior earned the highest ranking of his career. Cech has begun the dual season with a 2-3 record, but his most recent win was a stellar three set win over USC's Dejan Cvetkovic. Overall, Cech is 9-6, going 4-0 in three set matches and 5-2 in tiebreakers. Senior Charles Irie and freshman Tejesvi Veerepalli own a No. 44 national doubles ranking. The duo is 5-1 overall and 1-1 in dual matches. During the fall season, Irie and Veerepalli went 4-0 in the Bulldog Classic to capture the Flight B doubles title. The ITA will release the next singles and doubles rankings on Feb. 21.
Veerepalli, Zapletal Off to Fast Starts in Singles
Freshman Tejesvi Veerepalli and Mirko Zapletal are off to fast starts in singles. Since losing his first match of the dual season, Veerepalli has won four straight, including a three-set defeat of Oklahoma State's Artsem Burmistrau. Three of his four singles wins have come against top-25 teams, Oklahoma State, Tulsa and USC. Overall, Veerepalli is 9-1 in singles. Zapletal has also been solid, playing at both the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in the lineup. He won his first four before losing in Fresno State's last match against USC. He had a big three-set win over No. 90 Ricardo Soriano of Tulsa on Feb. 3.
Home Court Advantagebr> Last season the Bulldogs were a perfect 10-0 at home. And in a match against Boise State, the Bulldogs were on the verge of yet another victory until rain forced the match to go uncompleted. Since its dedication in 1998, the Wathen Tennis Center has been a great venue for fans and for the tennis team to play. The program owns .879 winning percentage over nine seasons, including three years of perfection at home. This year the `Dogs are 2-0 and will look to continue their success in the Wathen Tennis Center. Fresno State will attempt to reschedule matches versus Nebraska and Pepperdine and will host the likes of Arkansas, North Carolina State, Oklahoma and San Diego later this season.
Blue Gray Classic on the Horizon
The Bulldogs will travel to Montgomery, Ala. March 15-18 for the annual Blue Gray Classic. For nearly 60 years, some of the finest tennis players in the world have come to Montgomery in early spring to participate in the prestigious tournament. Since becoming a team sport in collegiate athletics, the top tennis programs in the country have competed in at the event. Last year the Bulldogs beat South Alabama 4-3 in the first round before losing to Notre Dame 4-2. This season the tournament again features some of the NCAA's elite, including Boise State, Notre Dame, Virginia Commonwealth and Tulsa. The draws have not yet been set for the tournament. For more information on the Blue Gray Classic, visit www.bluegraytennis.com.
Fresno State's New Faces
The Bulldogs have plenty of new faces in the lineup this year. Veerepalli, Zapletal, Flavio Mollinedo and Taylor Leiby are all freshman. Sophomore Greg Jackson and junior A.J. Kerin are also new to the team. Jackson is a transfer from Fresno Pacific and during the fall season he won the Bulldog Classic Flight C singles title. Kerin joined the team in the spring as a transfer from Santa Clara. Mollinedo and Leiby have both seen time at the No. 6 spot in the lineup. In the dual season, Leiby is 1-0 in singles and 1-3 in doubles.
Career Year for Cech
Cech kicked off his senior year with a bang during the fall season. The reigning WAC Player of the Year, participated in the ITA All-American for a second straight season and beat then-No. 11 Daniel Byrnes of Oklahoma State in the first round. As a result of his title run at the ITA Regional, Cech earned an automatic birth to the Indoor Nationals. He has now participated in all three major championships and will look to help Fresno State to a NCAA tournament birth.
WAC Championships
The Western Athletic Conference Championships will be held in Boise, Idaho for the second consecutive season. The men's tournament is April 26-28. Last year the `Dogs lost narrowly, 4-3 to Boise State in the final. The Bulldogs will play at Boise State on April 14 in their final regular season match before the conference tourney.
