Feb. 15, 2008

Garden City, NY - The 2007 season for Adelphi Men's Tennis was an extremely positive one. The Panthers finished 5-4, with strong individual performances including an All-ECC effort by senior Tomasz Walczak. The 2008 season returns six out of eight letterwinners from 2007, and with an addition of four newcomers, this looks to be the Brown and Gold's strongest squad in years.

Entering his first year at the helm of the Panthers' squad is Head Coach Ed Canner. Also serving as the women's head coach, Canner has been an active member in the Long Island tennis community for years, and will look to further Adelphi's success with his knowledge of the game. "Adelphi is a perfect location to build a strong tennis program, and I'm very excited to have this opportunity to work with the team. We'll have our work cut out for us this year, going up against great competition, but our players will do well. Our top four players can all place into the top spots at the ECC Tournament," Canner stated.

The key to the Panthers' success this season will be their off-season training. "The men trained hard in the off-season, playing three days and working out on the others. Our fitness level will be our advantage in any match-up," Canner discussed about his team.

Junior Alex Molotsky will be leading the Panthers as the 2008 season captain. Molotsky finished 10-8 overall in 2007. Walczak will also be a top performer returning to the Panthers for his final season. Walczak, who teams with Molotsky in doubles, has proven that he will be leader on the court. Rounding out Adelphi's senior class are Nicolas Sanchez and Pierre Streat. Sanchez in the 2007 season posted the Panthers' best regular season record going 6-3 in singles and 11-7 overall.

Sophomores Sebastian Nieves and Kris Frick will add much needed depth to the Panther roster. Canner has also brought in four freshmen; Leonard Bruno, Joseph Carbone, Michael Luyckx and Anton Voynov. All will be factors on the court in singles and doubles competition.

Three teams that Adelphi must do well against this season are Queens, Concordia and Dowling. "We're certainly going to be looked at as underdogs this season, but I know our players can make a showing at the ECC and be in the hunt for the title," Canner explaned.

The Panthers will come to action February 23, when they travel to Flushing, New York to participate in the East Coast Conference Flight Tournament.