Bona tennis team looking to reclaim A-10 Championship

Bona tennis team looking to reclaim Atlantic 10 championship

04/10/2003

ST. BONAVENTURE — Reclaiming the Atlantic 10 Championship. That has been the goal for the St. Bonaventure men’s tennis team since it stepped on campus nine months ago. This weekend the Bonnies are looking to reclaim the title they won in 2001 when they compete in the Atlantic 10 Tennis Championship starting Friday at the Oxford Athletic Club in Monroeville, Pa.
Last year the fourth-seeded Bonnies finished third after defeating Xavier, 4-3, while Richmond took home its first-ever A-10 Championship.
The Bonnies enter the tournament with a 10-8 record but a perfect 4-0 in the A-10, including a 6-1 win over last year’s runner-up George Washington.
“We purposely played a tough schedule which included nine regionally ranked teams to prepared for the tournament,” said St. Bonaventure coach Michael Bates.
Sophomore Mario Arce leads the Bonnies’ attack as he enters the tournament with the most singles wins of any A-10 player. He compiled 12 victories playing primarily at number one singles and a 14-10 doubles mark at number one. Arce is also a candidate for the Atlantic 10 Most Outstanding Performer award and added to his case when he defeated last year’s winner, George Washington’s Matt Hane, 6-4, 6-4, last weekend.
Playing at the number two and number three spots, respectively, are seniors Mikko Haulos and Vili Nurmi, who are the only remaining members of the 2001 A-10 championship team. Haulos has been solid at the number two position going 15-14, while Nurmi, the 2001 A-10 Most Outstanding Performer, has been equally consistent at number three with a 13-12 record. In addition, Nurmi has also teamed with Arce going 14-9 at number one doubles. The pair is the sixth ranked doubles tandem in the east Region.
“Vili and Mikko really want to go back to the NCAAs after going two years ago,” Bates said. “It’s something we’ve worked real hard for over the last nine months, on and off the court with conditioning and strength training.”
Sophomore Adam Price has been a pleasant surprise for the Bonnies playing at number five singles. He has improved from a 12-18 record a year ago to a 14-12 mark this year.
Sophomores Nikhil Murali and Sajeel Quereshi round out the line-up playing at the number four and number six spots, respectively.
“Last year we played well at certain times, but this year everyone is a little tougher and I think that is going to make a huge difference,” Bates said.
The seedings for the tournament will be announced tonight, with the Bonnies likely to garner one of the top spots.