Jan. 13, 2012
Northwestern (0-0) vs. Ball State (0-0)
Sunday, January 15
Combe Indoor Tennis Center
Evanston, Ill. • 2 p.m.
Live Stats: NUsports.com
Live Twitter updates: @NU_SportsLIVE
Northwestern (0-0) vs. UIC (0-0)
Sunday, January 15
Combe Indoor Tennis Center
Evanston, Ill. • 7 p.m.
Live Stats: NUsports.com
Live Twitter updates: @NU_SportsLIVE
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's men's tennis team under the direction of head coach Arvid Swan will open up the 2012 season on Sunday, Jan. 15 with not one, but two dual matches against Ball State and UIC at the Combe Indoor Tennis Center in Evanston, Ill.
2012 marks the third straight season that the 'Cats will kick off the campaign against the Cardinals and Flames in the same day. In 2011 NU posted a pair of 6-1 victories against the two foes and 2010 the Wildcats delivered back-to-back seven-point sweeps.
Northwestern's lineup this season figures to feature a talented mix of experience and fresh faces. The Wildcats lost only one player,
Andrew McCarthy, from last year's roster, while adding a trio of freshmen who will look to make an impact for the team. Swan has brought in
Nikhil Jayashankar (Saratoga, Calif./Saratoga),
Alexandru Pasareanu (Bluffton, S.C./Heritage Academy) and
Alberto Zanotti (Valencia, Venezuela/C.I. Carabobo), each of whom experienced impressive results throughout the fall campaign.
The Wildcats welcome back their top doubles pairing from a year ago in the form of senior Joshua Graves (Milwaukee, Wis./Nicolet) and junior Spencer Wolf (Coral Springs, Fla./Laurel Springs). Wolf also enters the season as Northwestern's top-ranked singles player according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), checking in at No. 97.
Ball State is the defending Mid-American Conference champions under head coach Bill Richards. The Cardinals return 10 letterwinners from that squad, including First Team All-MAC performer Dalton Albertin. Sunday's match is also the first of the season for Ball State.
UIC opens the season Saturday at DePaul before heading north to Evanston to square off with the 'Cats. The Flames, under head coach Hans Neufeld, finished 8-14 in 2011 and fell to Wright State in the third-place match at last season's Horizon League Championship.
Members of the men's team are expected to be on hand Friday night for the annual Meet the Team event at Combe. Following day one of the Wildcat Invitational on the women's side, Northwestern's men's and women's teams will be on hand from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. to meet fans. Those who come out will be able to hit balls on the newly resurfaced courts and enjoy free pizza with the 'Cats.
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