Depleted roster concerns TSU tennis coach Pound
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, January 22, 2002
The Troy State men’s tennis team is looking to rebound from a disappointing season last year. With a depleted roster the Trojans are going to have their work cut out for them.
Last year the Trojans finished 10-9 and lost in the opening round of the Atlantic Sun conference tournament. All season seemed to be a struggle as they never had a substantial winning streak. Eight of their 19 matches pitted them against teams that were ranked in the Top 75.
The Trojans were 41st year versus conference foes with their only two losses coming against ranked opponents.
"They never had any real continuity last year," TSU head coach Iain Pound said. "Hopefully we are not hampered with injuries."
Troy State will be without the service of sophomore Mark Prior who is not on the team anymore because of personal reasons.
"Losing Mark really hurts, he would have played in the top half of the lineup," Pound said. "We will bring some guys in before the spring and hope that they can step right in."
During the fall sophomores Joel Scalzi and Daniel Quiceno had very successful seasons, both notching five victories. Scalzi finished tied for third at the Southern Collegiate Championships in Athens, Ga., while Quiceno knocked off the No. 9 seed to advance to the round of 16 at the Omni Hote Regional Championships in Knoxville, Tenn.
Quiceno will play at No. 1 this season. He has a career singles record of 24-12 has the best net game on the team.
Junior Pablo Martinez will play at the No. 2 singles position. Pablo had a 2-2 singles record in the fall. Martinez is a transfer from Bethune-Cookman College.
They posted a 1-2 record in the fall.
The No. 2 and 3 doubles positions will not be decided until the spring.
The schedule has Troy State playing four out of the first nine against conference teams.
"This schedule starts out tough but will be a true test for our guys," Pound said. "A lot of new guys will get some much needed experience and that is great."
"Pablo is a solid baseline player," Pound said. "He has great aerobic capacity and great size."
Junior Rolando Vargas will play at the No. 3 position. Rolando also had a 2-2 single record in the fall and is also a transfer from Bethune-Cookman College.
Scalzi, Yussuf Migoko, Emir Basic and Ndumiso Ncube will all compete for the No. 4-6 singles positions. Basic and Ncube will join the team in the spring as freshman.
At doubles, Martine and Vargas will team up at the No. 1 position.