Jan. 4, 2011
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Texas A&M men's tennis team will open the 2011 spring campaign as the No. 10-ranked team in the nation, according to the Campbell/ITA College Tennis Rankings released today. In addition, seniors Jeff Dadamo and Austin Krajicek highlight the doubles rankings as the No. 1 duo in the nation.
"The team rankings are mainly based on how teams finished last year, but with eight of our first nine guys back from last year and with the additions that we have coming in January, we have a lot of depth and are excited for the opportunities ahead," A&M head coach Steve Denton said. "Just the experience combined with the new blood, it is a really good mix and I'm expecting a special season."
The Aggies are well represented in both the doubles and singles rankings. In addition to Dadamo (Tampa, Fla.) and Krajicek (Bradenton, Fla.) in the doubles rankings, the tandem of junior Colin Hoover (Victoria, Texas) and sophomore Alberto Bautista (McAllen, Texas) is No. 32, and sophomore Niall Angus (London, England) and senior teammate Alexey Grigorov (Moscow, Russia) are No. 49.
In singles, Krajicek leads the Aggies with a No. 23 ranking, and Angus and Dadamo are No. 51 and No. 54, respectively. Others representing A&M in the singles national rankings are Hoover at No. 95 and junior Alexis Klegou (Dunkerque, France) at No. 106.
Krajicek, who has earned a combined four All-America citations in singles and doubles during his career and was the 2010 Co-big 12 Player of the Year, and Dadamo, an All-American in doubles, are coming off a stellar fall season that included what is believed to be the first national championship for Texas A&M men's tennis as the duo defeated the Ole Miss doubles team of Chris and Marcel Thiemann, 6-3, 7-6 (3), at the 2010 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships in Flushing, New York.
"The doubles championship was a real bonus, especially for two guys who got into the tournament at the last minute," Denton said. "Austin and Jeff have been playing well together and really mesh, and the confidence they have gives the entire team confidence.
"Hoover had a wonderful fall and made great improvement, and Angus had good results, too, as well as others, and we are going to use all of that as a springboard into the dual season, and I'm really excited for what this team can do."
Denton returns 12 letterwinners from last year's team that went 25-7 last spring, the second-most wins in school history, including 18 victories against ranked foes. The team advanced to the NCAA round of 16 and was No. 10 in the final ranking, the highest finish for an Aggie men's tennis team since the 2001 team ended the year No. 7.
Denton also will welcome three heralded freshmen who will join the team in January: Jordan Szabo, one of the top juniors out of Australia; Junior Ore, a five-star recruit from Maryland who defeated the No. 1 player in the world at the French Open; and Jackson Withrow, a top-10 recruit from Omaha, Neb.
"I look forward to starting practice and to see how the new additions can help the team," Denton said. "Because of the depth we have, we really don't have any holes in the lineup, and that is a mark of a really good team.
"Our short-term goal is to qualify for the ITA National Indoor Championships, but we'll have to play Mississippi State as our first hurdle to qualify, and they are going to be really good this year, so we are looking to get off to a fast start."
A&M begins practice on Jan. 10 and opens the 2011 season on Saturday, Jan. 22 by hosting a doubleheader against Louisiana-Lafayette at noon followed by a match against Tyler Junior College at 6 p.m. at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center.
CAMPBELL/ITA DIVISION I MEN'S TOP 25 RANKINGS
1. Virginia
2. Southern California
3. Tennessee
4. Ohio State
5. Texas
6. UCLA
7. Baylor
8. Stanford
9. Florida
10. Texas A&M
11. Georgia
12. Kentucky
13. Louisville
14. Duke
15. Texas Tech
16. Illinois
17. Oklahoma
18. Mississippi
19. California
20. North Carolina
21. Pepperdine
22. Wake Forest
23. Georgia Tech
24. Virginia Tech
25. Michigan
For complete rankings, go to itatennis.com.