MATCH INFORMATION
Match No. 16 (GAME DAY INFO)
Daemen Wildcats (5-10, 0-0 ECC) vs. Queens Knights (10-3, 0-0 ECC)
Friday, Mar. 23 | 12 PM | Flushing, N.Y. | QC Tennis Center
Match No. 17 (GAME DAY INFO)
Daemen Wildcats (5-10, 0-0 ECC) vs. St. Thomas Aquinas Spartans (7-3, 0-0 ECC)
Saturday, Mar. 24 | 10 AM | Washington Township, N.J. | Washington Township Tennis Club
THE SERVE
The Daemen men's tennis team opens East Coast Conference play this weekend by visiting Queens and St. Thomas Aquinas - the first of five ECC matches on the schedule this spring. Both teams qualified for the conference tournament last spring with Queens picking up their first ECC title since 2012. Daemen is coming off a five-match spring break trip to Florida where they went 1-4. The Wildcats' most recent matches were back-to-back 5-4 losses, one to Eckerd and one to Earlham. The Wildcats enter the weekend looking to snap an 11-match ECC losing streak.
THE COACH
Stephen Beatty returns for his fifth season as the head coach of the Wildcats. Over the course of his first four seasons, Beatty has guided the Daemen men's tennis team to a 25-67 record. A former collegiate player at Division II Northwood University (Mich.) and Division III D'Youville College, Beatty got his coaching start as an assistant to Kelly Brown, serving for one season--Daemen's inaugural season of tennis competition--before being promoted to the top post.
THE RETURNERS
The Wildcats return the core of their 2016-17 team which went 6-18 overall and 0-5 in ECC play. Gone however is John LeMar who graduated as the program's all-time leader in doubles wins with 33. Leading the Daemen returners is junior Ricardo Ruiz Martinez who made an immediate impact last season after transferring from American International. Ruiz Martinez became the first Daemen player to earn All-ECC accolades after he was named to the league's second-team. Ruiz Martinez posted a 10-7 mark in singles play and an 8-7 mark in doubles play last season. Also back is sophomore Fabian Wilde who tied Ruiz Martinez for the team lead in singles wins, posting a 10-15 mark, and senior Mark Veitengruber who enters his senior season already ranking as the program's all-time leader in singles wins (34). Junior David Gonzalez Villegas also returns after leading the team in doubles wins with 12 last season.
THE NEWCOMERS
Daemen welcomes four true freshmen to the mix, three of whom are expected to contribute immediately. Look for German native Tim Georg, Mexican native Pablo Martinez Hernandez and Minnesota native Jose Williamson III to be in the lineup early and often.
GEORG STARTS FAST
Freshman Tim Georg got his collegiate career off to a fast start by winning his singles draw at the Daemen Invitational Tournament which was held Sept. 15-17. Georg went 3-0 at the tournament, and picked up a pair of victories against Division I players in the process. First, Georg knocked off Colgate's Tyler Krantz in the semifinal round (4-6, 6-2, 1-0), and he followed with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat of Niagara's Josh Wilson.
VEITENGRUBER SETS CAREER WINS MARK
With wins in both singles and doubles during an 8-1 defeat of RIT on Sept. 27, senior Mark Veitengruber surpassed Gregory Lowe's program-record for combined singles and doubles wins (62). Veitengruber, already the program's all-time leader in singles wins (46), now has a combined 77 wins in his career.
MORE RECORD CHASERS
Veterans Mark Veitengruber, Ricardo Ruiz Martinez and David Gonzalez Villegas are all closing in on team records...
- Veitengruber has a team-best 12 singles wins this season, just one shy of matching his own team record for wins in a single season (13) which he set as a sophomore (2015-16 season)
- Veitengruber's 31 career doubles wins places him just two shy of the mark (33) set by John LeMar from 2013-17
- Ruiz Martinez and Gonzalez Villegas each have 10 doubles wins this season, two shy of the latter's team record for wins in a single season (12) which he set last year
QUEENS SCOUTING REPORT
Queens is led by head coach Somadi Druker, a three-time ECC Coach of the Year, who is now in her fourth season at the helm. Druker led Queens to the ECC regular season and tournament championships last year. Queens notched the top spot in the NCAA East Region and captured the regional title as well, advancing to the NCAA Tournament's round of 16. Seven players return including all-conference selections Cosme Jubera, Gabriel Mendez, Roman Laga and Richard Sec. With the influx of returning talent, the Knights were picked first in the ECC preseason poll, and they rattled off 10 consecutive wins to start the season before dropping three straight during a trip to Florida last week.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. Queens: 0-4
Streak: Lost 4
Last Meeting: Queens 9, Daemen 0 | Amherst, N.Y. | April 14, 2017
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS SCOUTING REPORT
St. Thomas Aquinas is led by head coach Matthew Capell who has led the Spartans to back-to-back ECC Tournament appearances. The Spartans posted a 10-9 overall record and a 3-2 mark in league play last season despite not having an all-conference performer on the roster. After being picked fourth in the ECC preseason poll, the Spartans have gotten off to a 7-3 start this season, including a sweep of three matches during a trip to Florida last week.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. St. Thomas Aquinas: 0-4
Streak: Lost 4
Last Meeting: St. Thomas Aquinas 7, Daemen 2 | Williamsville, N.Y. | April 15, 2017
ON THE HORIZON
Daemen concludes a string of 10 consecutive road matches by visiting Northeast-10 Conference affiliates Franklin Pierce (Friday, Mar. 30) and Southern New Hampshire (Saturday, Mar. 31).
