Jan. 30, 2008

LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell men's tennis team will open the 2008 season this weekend, hosting Duquesne in a dual at the West Branch Tennis Club. The Bison posted a 10-14 overall record and 2-3 record in league play last season and will look to continue moving up in the Patriot League rankings this spring.

Bucknell returns six letterwinners from last year's squad: senior captains Ira Reibeisen (Armonk, N.Y./Rye Country Day-Upper School) and Ben Young (New Canaan, Conn./New Canaan), juniors Jonathan Brenner (Manhasset, N.Y./Chaminade), Daniel Bednarek (Haworth, N.J./Bergen Catholic) and Ryan Sandburg (Orange, Calif./Canyon), and sophomore Zach Hascoe (Greenwich, Conn./Brunswick). Additionally, the Bison add depth this season with four newcomers: junior Jamie Watson (Darien, Conn./Darien), sophomore Peter Eyvazzadeh (Bethlehem, Pa./Moravian Academy) and freshmen Anton Kovic (Montreal, Quebec/Milton Academy (Mass.)) and Mark Malloy (Bronxville, N.Y./Hackley School).

"The men made some great strides last year in their level of play, their commitment to working and winning, and their overall dedication to Bucknell tennis," said Bucknell head coach Rebecca Helt. "Our entire starting line-up returned this year and in addition, we've added two solid newcomers (Anton Kovic and Mark Malloy) who will impact our starting doubles and singles lineup."

Bucknell's top returner from last season is Reibeisen. "Ira is no-doubt one of the best singles players in the league," said Helt. He received his second First Team All-Patriot League honor in the spring of 2007 and set the school record for all-time career singles victories (67), doubles victories (57) and combined victories (124) in the fall of 2007. Reibeisen also notched Patriot League Player of the Month accolades in October of 2006 and 2007 and was named Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for the 2006-07 season.

"We are returning one of the best doubles teams in the region with Jonathan Brenner and Ryan Sandburg," noted Helt. Last season, Brenner and Sandburg went 25-12 overall in doubles play and 9-6 at the No. 1 position. Sandburg tied Reibeisen's all-time career doubles victoriesrecord of 57 wins in the fall of 2007.

"In addition, we've added two other solid doubles teams to our lineup, both including our freshmen Anton Kovic and Mark Malloy." A native of Montreal, Quebec, Kovic attended Milton Academy in Massachusetts where he received honorable mention in the Independent School League as a junior. For 18 year olds, he was ranked eighth in Quebec for singles. Malloy comes to Bucknell from Hackley School in Bronxville, N.Y. where he was a four-time tennis team MVP and notched a career-high ranking of No. 31 for 18 year olds in the Eastern section.

Helt feels that, "This might be the first year in a long time that we are solid from top to bottom. Zach Hascoe, Ben Young and Dan Bednarek have all returned playing better than ever and they will round out the middle and bottom of our lineup."

After opening the 2008 spring season against Duquesne this Saturday, Feb. 2, the Bison will host additional home matches against Saint Francis (Pa.) on Feb. 23, Fairleigh Dickinson on March 22, UMBC on March 29, Navy on March 30 and Delaware on April 22. On the road, Bucknell will face Quinnipiac, St. Bonaventure, Brown, Villanova, Mount St. Mary's, Colgate, Binghamton, Penn State, Lehigh, Army, Lafayette and Bloomsburg.

"Our schedule is stronger than ever and we plan to use that level of play to prepare us for Patriot League competition," said Helt, "This year, our goal is to play in the championship match. Our main competition will still be against Navy and Army, but I feel we've taken a huge step closer to being able to compete with those strong programs." The 2008 season will wrap up with the Patriot League Championships, set for April 25 - 27 in Hamilton, N.Y., at Colgate.