2008 CCIW Men’s Tennis Championship Preview

NAPERVILLE, Ill. – College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) men’s tennis teams will travel to central Illinois and Evergreen Racquet Club April 25-26 for the 2008 CCIW Men’s Tennis Championship, hosted by Elmhurst College.

This will be the fifth straight season that the CCIW will use dual meet scoring for the men’s tennis championship.

Wheaton comes into this year’s championship as the No. 1 seed after finishing the regular season with a 5-0 conference record, including a 7-2 victory over Augustana on April 20. The win secured the No. 1 seed for this weekend’s championship. 2007 No. 1 singles champion Josh Williams (Naperville, Ill.) came away with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Augustana’s Rafael Romero (Punto Fijo, Venezuela/Byron, Ill. H.S.) at No. 1 singles, then, teamed with Justin Miller (Scottsdale, Ariz.) at No. 1 doubles for an 8-4 win over Chris Mullin (Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South) and Kyle Doyle (Maurnee, Ohio/Anthony Wayne). David Warren (Oneonta, N.Y.) and Jordan Williams (Naperville, Ill.) won their singles matches at No. 5 and 6 respectively, then, teamed up for an 8-6 win at No. 3 doubles over Augustana’s Geoff Schoon (Rock Island, Ill./H.S.) and Greg Ruth (Quincy, Ill.).

Wheaton, who owns a first-round bye, will face the winner of the match between fourth-seeded Illinois Wesleyan and fifth-seeded Elmhurst, which will be played at 10 a.m., Friday.

Augustana finished 3-2 in conference play this season and will be the No. 3 seed this weekend. Against Wheaton on April 20, Mullin came away with a 4-6, 6-4, 10-6 win over Miller at No. 2 singles. At No. 2 doubles, Romero teamed with Andy McCarter (Dixon, Ill./H.S.) for an 8-6 win against Kevin Graham (Wheaton, Ill.) and Davis Moore (West Chicago, Ill.).

The Vikings will face sixth-seeded North Central at 8 a.m. Friday, with the winner to face Carthage, who also owns a first-round bye and enters the weekend as the four-time defending champion and No. 2 seed after going 4-1 in conference play this season.

Carthage solidified the No. 2 position with a 7-0 win over North Central on April 15 and a 7-2 win over Augustana on April 20. Sergio Lopez (Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico) took home CCIW Men’s Tennis Player of the Week honors on April 23, winning both his singles and doubles matches against Augustana. Last week, Lopez went 6-0 overall with victories against Olivet Nazarene, Wisconsin-Whitewater and Augustana. Against Wisconsin-Whitewater, Lopez defeated John Reed at No. 3 singles (6-0, 6-3), then, teamed with Miguel Yunes (Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico) at No. 1 doubles and defeated Alex Lowe and Erich Palacek 8-4.

Illinois Wesleyan ended the regular season with a two-match winning streak against non-conference opponents Knox and Eureka Colleges. Dan Chang (Palos Hills, Ill./Stagg) won both of his matches at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles against Eureka on April 22. Chang teamed with Paul Oehrlein (Des Plaines, Ill./ Maine West) at No. 1 doubles and won 8-2 over Eureka’s Aaron Rapp and Patrick Howard. Oehrlein also won his singles match at the No. 2 slot, defeating Howard 6-7 (6-8), 6-1, 10-3.

Elmhurst solidified the No. 5 seed this weekend with a 9-0 win over North Central on April 21. Dave Douglass (Park Ridge, Ill./Maine South) was the winner at No. 1 singles over Chris Bennorth (Batavia, Ill./St. Charles East) 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 while Robert Korsch (Franklin Park, Ill./East Leyden) won at No. 2 singles 6-1, 6-2 over Ryan Piers (Washington, Ill./H.S.). Douglass teamed with Alex Wiesner (River Forest, Ill./Triton C.C.) at No. 1 doubles and won 8-3 over Bennorth and Piers.

Friday, April 25, 2008
Round One
#3 Augustana vs. #6 North Central, 8 a.m.
#4 Illinois Wesleyan vs. #5 Elmhurst, 10 a.m.

Semifinals
#2 Carthage vs. Augustana/North Central, 5 p.m.
#1 Wheaton vs. Illinois Wesleyan/Elmhurst, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 26
Fifth Place Match
Round One Losers, 8 a.m.

Third Place Match
Semifinal Losers, Noon

Championship
Semifinal Winners, 2 p.m.