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Previewing the 2008 MWC Championships
April 21, 2008
by Christopher Biro, TCU Media Relations FORT WORTH, Texas - The TCU men's and women's tennis teams will host the 2008 Mountain West Conference Tennis Championships held at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center on TCU's campus from April 23-26. This will be the first time TCU will host the event since it joined the Mountain West Conference in the 2005-2006 season.
The TCU men's tennis team, currently ranked No. 36 in the nation, claimed a share of the Mountain West Conference regular season title, and earned the top seed for the league championships. TCU has been a dominant force in the MWC, winning the conference title in its inaugural year in 2006. TCU also performed strongly during conference play last season, finishing second in regular season action, and reaching the semifinals at the MWC Championships before losing to eventual champion UNLV.
The Horned Frogs are led by Head Coach Dave Borelli, who is in his second season with the men's team. Borelli has had an outstanding coaching career, claiming seven national titles in 14 years as head women's coach at USC. Borelli earned career win No. 400 earlier this season against UNLV. Borelli is assisted by Jeff Kutac, a Texas native, who is also in his second year with the Horned Frogs.
TCU's strengths in doubles will lie in its upperclassmen and two freshmen for this year's tournament. Senior Cosmin Cotet partnering junior Kriegler Brink have been a formidable team this season, posting a 14-6 record at No.1 doubles, and ranking among the top-20 doubles teams nationally. Freshmen Zach Nichols and Jack Seider have also been very solid this season, recording a 13-8 mark at the No. 3 position.
In singles play, TCU will once again look to Cotet, Brink, and Nichols, who have all had consistent results this season. Cotet is currently ranked No. 36 nationally and has put together a 19-6 record at No.1 singles. Brink has also been impressive, playing at the No. 3 and No.4 singles positions where he has compiled a 21-2 record. Nichols, playing primarily at No.5 singles, has had an amazing start to his collegiate tennis career, posting a 21-4 record.
The TCU women's tennis team, ranked No. 20 in the country, claimed this year's MWC regular season title outright with a perfect 8-0 record. Like the men's team, they won the conference title in 2006 and shared the regular season crown with BYU last season. The Frogs also reached the semifinals of last year's Mountain West Conference Championships before falling to UNLV.
The women's team is led by Head Coach Jefferson Hammond and assisted by Colin Foster, both in their second season at TCU. Performances from the Horned Frogs this season have been solid from everyone in the lineup. Players to look out for from TCU during the tournament will include senior Kewa Nichols, juniors Macall Harkins and Anna Sydorska, sophomore Nina Munch-Soegaard and freshmen Idunn Hertzberg, Katariina Tuohimaa and Maria Babanova.
Tickets for admission to the tournament are available at www.gofrogs.com.
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