If preseason results are any indicator of future success, then the 2008 season looks to be one of the most promising in recent memory for the men's and women's tennis teams.
Both squads are currently nationally ranked, and each team has individual players who hold national rankings. The women's side is currently ranked 68th on the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) list, while sophomore Melissa Saiontz, ranked a commanding 36th in the preseason singles ranking, is the Tigers' highest-ranked individual.
The Miami native and 2006 champion of the USTA Women's Collegiate Invitational "A" flight bracket is also the highest-ranked player in the Ivy League. This past fall Saiontz reached the quarterfinals of the Wilson/ITA East Regional Tournament and won the "A" singles consolation bracket at the William & Mary Invitational.
Saointz was not the only player on the squad to enjoy a successful preseason. The team won 30 of its 39 matches at the Duke Invitational Tournament, and in October USTA at the Women's Collegiate Invitational tournament in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., junior Kristen Scott won the "E" singles draw.
Given such promising early-season results, members of the team are optimistic heading into the season.
"Our team is stronger and deeper than my freshman and sophomore years," senior Ivana King said. "Last year I was surprised we weren't the number-one team in the Ivy League. This year I would be even more surprised if we don't come out on top."
The optimism is not without a purpose — this team is aiming high.
"Last year our goal was to take the Ivy League, this year it's beyond that," King said. "Now it's to go to the NCAA finals tournament in Tulsa."
On the No. 71 men's team, 82nd-ranked junior Peter Capkovic, leads the team in singles, while the doubles team of junior Alex Krueger-Wyman and sophomore George Carpeni sits 37th nationally. The pair played No. 1 doubles for the Tigers throughout the fall, winning all four of their matches at the ECAC Division I Team Tournament, including a win over the top-ranked Penn State team in the finals, and also won the A bracket at the Farnsworth Princeton Invitational in September.
Princeton's preseason success started in September at the Navy Invitational, where sophomore Ilya Trubov finished a perfect 6-0, winning his singles and doubles flight titles, and continued with the Virginia Invitational, where Carpeni and juniors Alex Vuckovic and Capkovic all reached the semifinal round. The highlight of the preseason came at the ECAC Team Tournament, where the Tigers reached the final round before falling to division-leading Penn State.
Princeton breezed into the finals of that tournament, forfeiting just five of 27 total matches in the first three rounds of the tournament. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Penn State — ranked No. 1 in the region — proved to be too much and ground its way to a 5-2 victory.
Krueger-Wyman, who finished the tournament with a 7-1 record, saw his team's results in the tournament as a good sign for future victories.
"[Head coach Glenn Michibata] has been successful in getting us to play as a team," Krueger-Wyman said. "Most guys are pretty confident and felt good up until the last match."
The women begin their spring season Jan. 30 at home against Temple, while the men open on the road in North Carolina against Elon, Duke and UNC-Wilmington Jan. 28-31.
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