Men's Tennis to Open 2008 Season Against Northwestern
January 17, 2008 | Men's Tennis
Jan. 17, 2008
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - - The University of Louisville men's tennis team will open the 2008 spring season against Northwestern Friday at 5 p.m. at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center.
The Cardinals, ranked No. 58 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, are coming off of a 10-15 season, in which they faced a multitude of nationally ranked teams and finished runner-up in the 2007 BIG EAST tournament. Coach Rex Ecarma will look to one senior, one junior, five sophomores and four freshman to carry the load of another challenging schedule.
Freshman Austen Childs made an impressive debut in the fall season, picking up wins over six nationally-ranked players en route to a 10-4 singles record. Childs went undefeated through the All-American Prequalifying draw to the All-American Qualifying draw and also advanced to the quarterfinals of the Southern Intercollegiates.
Northwestern has already played two matches this season, picking up a 4-0 win over Illinois-Chicago and a 6-1 decision over the University of Chicago in a doubleheader on Jan. 13.
"Northwestern is a traditionally strong Big Ten program with many appearances in the national rankings," said Ecarma. "Arvid Swan is a great young coach who is only going to make Northwestern better. In any year, this is an extremely challenging match, but especially this season when we have so many young players. Our team is excited to begin the season, because they are tired of beating up on each other in practice. They are ready to see different faces across the net."
Players Mentioned
