Feb. 5, 2008
Complete Weekly Release in PDF Format 
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Both the USC Upstate men's and women's teams will play two dual matches this week, with both programs heading to Wofford for a 4 p.m. Thursday match and then they will host S.C. State on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Women's Tennis Set For Week In Spartanburg
After a 1-1 opening week, the Upstate women's tennis team will get back to work with two more dual matches this week, facing crosstown rival Wofford on Thursday at 2 p.m. before heading back to the USC Upstate Tennis Complex for a Saturday showdown with South Carolina State. Wofford has started the season a perfect 3-0, thanks to 7-0 wins over Mercer and North Carolina A&T and a 4-3 win over Gardner-Webb. On Saturday, the women will host South Carolina State, the reigning MEAC champions, in a 10 a.m. match. The Bulldogs will be playing their first match of the season.
Men's Tennis Ready For Crosstown Showdown
The Upstate men, after a convincing 6-1 win over Southern Conference foe Georgia Southern on Saturday, will face their third team from the Southern Conference on Thursday, when they head crosstown to rival Wofford. The Terriers have started 2-1 thanks to convincing 5-2 wins over A-Sun foes Gardner-Webb and Mercer. On Saturday, the men will face defending MEAC power South Carolina State in a 10 a.m. match. South Carolina State is opening its season at Upstate.
Looking For 100
Head coach Alessandro De Marzo enters Thursday's matches at Wofford looking to become the third coach in school history to reach 100 career wins, joining Alan Ferguson (1988-97) and Tami Matheny (1998-2004) in the club. DeMarzo has helped USC Upstate rise to sights unseen, as he led the Spartan men to the 2007 NCAA Division II quarterfinals and took the women's team to the 2007 NCAA Division II Nationals for the first time in school history. DeMarzo has a 52-21 career record with the men's team and a 47-22 record in four years as the women's coach. Ferguson, the school's winnigest coach, posted 126 wins as the men's coach and 38 with the women for 164 career wins. Matheny, who currently assists the program, posted 70 wins as the men's coach and 57 as the women's coach for 127 career wins.
Hernandez Reaches 50
Senior Susana Hernandez posted her 50th career singles win on Feb. 1 against North Carolina A&T, taking a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 2 singles over Terika Palmer. She is one of just two players in school history to reach the mark, along with teammate senior Diana Martinez, who has 59 career wins. Hernandez finished 2007 ranked 31st in the ITA Division II rankings, after posting a 20-6 record. Hernandez and Martinez may be joined in the club shortly, with junior Anna Novo needing just two wins to reach 50 in her career.
Sebastian's Assault On The Record Book
Senior Sebastian Gonzales-Orbegoso is quickly rising through the USC Upstate record book. The No. 5 singles player has a 44-26 career singles record, which is eighth in school history in singles wins, as Gonzales-Orbegoso passed Rudy Vargas (1991-95), with his three-set win over Georgia Southern's Mark Paetz on Feb. 2. His 46-26 career doubles record is currently fourth in wins in school history, just four short of Diego Sist (2002-06) and third place. His 91 combined wins is fifth in school history, three shy of passing Jorge Ventura (1993-96) for fourth.
Novo's 90
Junior Anna Novo enters the weekend with a chance to become the seventh player in school history with 90 wins in their career. The No. 1 singles and doubles player has posted an impressive 48-16 mark in singles play during her career and has added a 38-27 mark in doubles. Novo needs to post a perfect week to reach the mark, winning both her singles matches and doubles matches with partner Emilia Milovanovic. Novo won singles tournament titles at the Upstate Fall Tournament and the Wolfpack Invitational and added doubles titles at both tournaments as well.
Franz Earns Spartans First DI Ranking
Thanks to two wins over ranked players in the fall, junior Sandy Franz has earned USC Upstate's first individual ranking as a Division I program, as he is currently 96th in the ITA Singles Rankings. Paced by a tremendous fall, Franz finds himself in the ITA rankings after winning tournament titles at the USC Upstate Fall Invitational and the USC Fall Invitational, compiling an 11-2 singles mark. He posted a three-set win against Florida's 91st-ranked Nestor Briceno, 3-6, 6-0, 6-4, at the Southern Intercollegiates. In another meeting against a ranked opponent, Franz downed Charlotte's 62nd-ranked Roy Sichel in straight sets, 6-4, 7-5.
