Men's Tennis | 3/15/2019 12:06:00 PM

MATCH INFORMATION

Match #9
Daemen Wildcats (1-7, 0-0 ECC) vs. Azusa Pacific Cougars (10-1, 0-0 Pacific West)
Saturday, Mar. 16 |  9:30 AM PST  |  Azusa, Calif. 

Match #10
Daemen Wildcats (1-7, 0-0 ECC) vs. Concordia University  (7-4, 0-2 Pacific West)
Saturday, Mar. 16 |  3 PM PST  |  Irvine, Calif. 

THE SERVE

Daemen traveled to Southern California for two matches this Saturday. The Wildcats first take on Pacific West Conference members Azusa Pacific in the first match followed by a match against Concordia University. Both teams are in the Los Angeles area. Both teams are Division II members with Azusa Pacific being the No. 11 team in the country.

MCDERMOTT ERA

The 2018-19 season marks the start of a new era for Daemen as head coach Kerry McDermott begins his first season with the program. In early July, McDermott was named the third head coach in team history after spending the last 36 seasons as the head men's tennis coach at the University of Nebraska. In that time, McDermott led the Huskers to 405 victories, the most of any coach in team history, and two NCAA Tournament appearances. 

REPEAT RUIZ

Ricardo Ruiz Martinez enters his senior campaign as one of the most accomplished players in team history. After beginning his career at American International, Ruiz Martinez has earned second team All-ECC honors in each of the last two seasons since transferring to Daemen; he is the only player in team history to have earned all-conference accolades. The Valencia, Spain native established new program records for singles wins (17) and singles winning percentage (.654) last season. For his career, Ruiz Martinez ranks among Daemen's all-time leaders in combined wins (52 - 5th) and singles wins (28 -  3rd). 

IMPRESSING @ ITA'S

Daemen opened the 2018-19 season by putting together the program's best-ever showing at the ITA East Region Championship held earlier this month at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The prestigious tournament brings together teams from across the NCAA Division II East Region for a weekend-long tournament. Seniors Ricardo Ruiz Martinez and David Gonzalez Villegas teamed up to advance into the quarterfinals of the doubles draw, posting a 3-1 record to do so. The Wildcats also got doubles wins from the pairs of Jose Williamson III / Fabian Wilde and Patrick O'Brien / James Schaab-Rozbicki. In singles play, both Ruiz Martinez and Wilde advanced out of the qualifying draw and into the main singles draw. Schaab-Rozbicki and O'Brien also earned singles wins in the tournament. 

NEW BENCHMARK

With three doubles wins at the ITA East Region Championship, senior David Gonzalez Villegas established a new program record for career doubles wins. The Pereira, Colombia native, who opened the season with 31 doubles wins to his name, surpassed the 33-win record established by his former teammates, John LeMar and Mark Veitengruber. Now with 35 total doubles wins, Gonzalez Villegas also ranks fourth in team history with 53 combined singles and doubles wins in his career. 

IMMEDIATE IMPACT

Sophomore Jose Williamson III made an immediate impact last season for the Wildcats, racking up a program record 13 doubles wins. The Minneapolis native edged teammates David Gonzalez Villegas and Ricardo Ruiz Martinez who each totaled 12 doubles wins last season. Gonzalez Villegas has reached 12 doubles wins twice in his career. 

LET'S GET WILDE

Junior Fabian Wilde recorded the 50th win of his career with a 6-4, 5-7, 1-0 defeat of Walsh's Clemens Wagner on Feb. 16. Wilde becomes just the sixth player in team history to record at least 50 combined singles and doubles victories. It also marked the 27th singles win of his career, pulling him into a tie with John LeMar for fourth in team history. 

ROAD WARRIORS

Daemen will spend some significant time on the road this spring as 17 of their 20 matches occur away from home. Daemen will play nine straight road matches to open the spring season. They'll finally get a home match under their belt March 23 when Millersville visits for a non-conference meeting. 

STIFF TESTS

Daemen has played a tough schedule so far this season. Six of the team's first eightopponents are included in the Oracle/ITA rankings for their respective regions: Southern New Hampshire (East #4), Merrimack (East #5), Le Moyne (East #6), Mercyhurst (Atlantic #2), Edinboro (Atlantic #5), Fairmont State (Atlantic #6). Things don't appear to be getting an easier as they'll face the number 11 team in the country, Azusa Pacific, and regionally-ranked Concordia (West #6) this weekend.

AZUSA PACIFIC SCOUTING REPORT

Azusa Pacific, located in Azusa, Calif., is a member of the Pacific West Conference. The Cougars are coached by veteran Mark Bohren who is entering his 23rd year at the helm. The Cougars lost five players from last season's 28-3 team, including Oliver Frank and Christian Schmid who were both named All-Americans last season. The Cougars were defeated in the NCAA Semifinals by tNo. 2 Columbus State after winning the Pacific West Tournament. No. 11 ranked Azusa Pacific only has one loss on the season coming to Hawaii Pacific. The Saturday match against Daemen will be the first meeting between the two teams.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. AZUSA PACIFIC

Series Record: 0-0
Streak: N/A
Last Meeting: N/A

CONCORDIA SCOUTING REPORT

Concordia, located in Irvine, Calif., is also a member of the Pacific West Conference in NCAA Division II, and the Eagles are led by eighth-year head coach Jonathan Samchez. The Tigers posted a 9-12 record last season, and return all but two players to the fold. The Eagles are off to a 7-4 start this season with an 0-2 record in the conference. The Eagles fell to University of California-Riverside on Thursday 5-2 after boasting a modest three-match win streak. This will be the first meeting between the two schools.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. CONCORDIA

Series Record: 0-0
Streak: N/A
Last Meeting: N/A

ON THE HORIZON

The Wildcats will host Millersville University on Friday, March 22 at Miller Tennis Center.