Huskers Return Home For a Pair of Conference Matchups

Lincoln, Neb. - The No. 59 Nebraska men’s tennis team faces its toughest test of the season when No. 3 Texas comes to Lincoln, Friday, April 7, at 2 p.m. to take on the Huskers at the Nebraska Tennis Center. NU is hoping to snap a four-match losing skid and pick up its first conference win of the season.

The Longhorns have three players ranked in the singles poll, including No. 20 Travis Helgeson, No. 30 Callum Beale, and No. 36 Roger Gubser. Texas comes in with a 14-1 overall record, after falling only to No. 4 Duke.

The Huskers turn around to face their fourth ranked opponent in five matches when No. 19 Texas A&M comes to Lincoln, Sunday, April 19, to play the Huskers at the Nebraska Tennis Center at 1 p.m. The Aggies have just one player ranked in the singles poll, as Jerry Makowski comes into the match ranked eighth in the nation.

Posch, Huskers Face String of Ranked Opponents
The Huskers and senior Jerry Posch are set to face a gauntlet of ranked opponents in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association national poll through the remainder of the season. Posch has had some success with ranked opponents, stunning No. 23 Daniel Byrnes of Oklahoma State, Friday, March 24, with a 3-6, 7-6, 14-12, upset in the top spot of the lineup, as well as an upset of No. 49 Sam Chang of Florida State to help the Huskers knock off then-No. 22 Florida State.

The Huskers have played six ranked opponents so far this season, including three of the past four matches. Each of the four remaining opponents left on the Huskers’ schedule are also ranked. The Huskers are 1-5 against ranked opponents, and 10-8 on the season (0-3 Big 12). Posch is 2-4 against ranked players this season and will likely face at least two more. Overall, Posch has a 6-7 singles record.

Huskers Struggle in Colorado
The Huskers traveled to Colorado last weekend, falling to Denver on Friday, March 31, 5-2, and to then-No. 35 Colorado on Sunday, April 2, 7-0.

Against the Pioneers, the Huskers won the doubles point with help from senior Joerg Barthel and junior James Clow, who defeated Nejc Smole and Steve Flaks, 8-4, at the No. 2 spot. Freshman Renato Melo and junior Adrian Szatmary sealed the point for Nebraska with an 8-6 win over Viktor Zetterholm and Aljosa Nipic at No. 3.

Freshman Hendrik Stahmer won the singles point for Nebraska at the No. 6 spot with a 6-2, 6-1, win over Nipic.

Against Colorado, the Huskers were swept in straight sets except for Posch, who sent Eric Molnar into three sets at the top spot, but lost 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Huskers Remain Strong in National Rankings
Nebraska remained in the national poll for the 11th consecutive week as it slipped to No. 59 this week, down six spots from No. 53 last week. NU rose to 48th in the rankings for the week of March 14, marking the highest spot it has acheived through the 2005-06 season. Nebraska began the season at No. 75.

Clow Providing Consistency for Huskers
Junior James Clow, with a 10-7 singles record, has been a major contributor to the Husker lineup throughout the 2005-06 season. He has played in each of Nebraska’s matches this spring and compiled the best record on the squad, while switching between the No. 2, 3 and 4 slots.

This spring he helped Nebraska upset then-No. 22 Florida State with a win over Chirs Westerhof in the No. 3 spot. Despite losing his first two matches, Clow came back to claim a six-match winning streak until Ivan Milivojevic of Arkansas-Little Rock stopped it with a 7-6, 6-4, win at the No. 3 spot on Feb. 26. Clow and fellow junior Arturo Navarro are an impressive 7-4 in doubles this spring.

Clow is the only returning player who produced a winning record through the 2005 spring season, and Coach Kerry McDermott said Clow the most improved player returning for the 2005-06 season. Clow was also the only Husker to earn a winning record through the fall 2005 campaign.

Nebraska Improves Doubles Play
Despite getting off to a slow start in the doubles column, the Huskers have found a winning combination recently, compiling a consistent 24-26 record on the season, including winning three of the past six doubles points. Juniors James Clow and Arturo Navarro are an impressive 7-4 this spring while playing together. Senior Joerg Barthel and junior Adrian Szatmary have produced a 6-3 record and are undefeated in conference play, while the tandems of Szatmary with Barthel and Melo have each posted one of Nebraska’s two conference wins in the doubles column.

Tate Remains Strong in Singles Play
Mark Tate, a native of The Woodlands, Texas, is making a big contribution to the Husker lineup, producing a 9-5 record on the season. Tate opened the spring season by winning nine of his first 10 matches as a Husker.

Tate came to Nebraska as a sophomore after spending a year competing for Northern Illinois, where he produced an overall 16-13 record for the Huskies. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound right-hander was a Midwest Open finalist as well as a St. Louis National Open finalist. While attending Oak Ridge High School, Tate was a state champion in 2004.

Newcomers Making Big Contributions to Husker Lineup
Coach Kerry McDermott announced four talented newcomers joined the 2005-06 roster, hoping to fill spots left by departed seniors Joel Reckewey and Jose Rivera. Renato Melo, Hendrik Stahmer, Mark Tate and Arturo Navarro came to Nebraska from diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Melo came to Nebraska as a freshman from Belo Horizonte, Brazil. This spring Melo is 7-6 in singles play, recording one of Nebraska’s two conference wins in the singles column. In 2005, Melo was ranked third in Brazil in the under-18 division and participated in the National Championship tournament.

Stahmer was the 2002 Nebraska Class B singles champion while attending Beatrice High School as an exchange student in Beatrice, Neb. He is orignially from Hamburg, Germany, and won his first match of the season against Zack Warren of BYU, 6-1, 6-0, helping the Huskers to a seventh-place finish at the HEB Tournament, March 2-4. He has produced a 3-4 record overall this spring.

Navarro, a junior, has provided the Huskers with depth at doubles, compiling a 7-4 doubles record with fellow junior James Clow. Navarro transfered to Nebraska from Tennessee-Chattanooga, where he played in the No. 1 spot in singles and doubles, producing a 14-10 singles record in 2005. The Naucal, Mexico, native also earned second-team All-Southern Conference honors last season.

Nebraska Upsets No. 22 Florida State
The Nebraska men’s tennis team upset then-No. 22 Florida State, 4-3, Feb. 4, in Tallahasee, Fla., at the Scott Spiecher Tennis Center in a quad tournament hosted by the Seminoles.

The win marked the first time the Huskers upset a team ranked in the top 25 since Nebraska defeated then-No. 16 Rice on Jan. 22, 2005.

Three Huskers Recognized For Academic Achievements
Three members of the Nebraska men’s tennis team were recognized for their outstanding academic achievements by being named to the fall 2005 Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.

Senior Jerry Posch and junior James Clow were recognized along with former Husker Joel Reckeway. This is Posch’s third time on the list, Clow’s second and Reckewey’s fourth.

The Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll recognizes student-athletes who earned a 3.0 grade-point average or higher during the previous semester. Overall, Nebraska had 235 student-athletes named to the fall honor roll, including 35 who produced perfect 4.0 grade-point averages during the fall semester.

Huskers Complete Successful Fall Campaign
The Nebraska men’s tennis team competed in four tournaments through fall 2005, with junior James Clow producing the best record at 7-5. Junior Adrian Szatmary recorded a solid 4-4 record.

At the Denver Fall Invitational, Sept. 25, in Denver, Colo., Clow made it to the Singles Flight A consolation finals, but lost to Minnesota’s DJ Gaetz, 7-6 (8), 7-5, after losing in the first round of the Singles Flight A.

Clow was the only Husker to move past two rounds in the double-elimination tournament. Sophomore Karl Jones made it to the Singles Flight B consolation finals, but was defeated, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1, by Ryan Scott.

Senior Jerry Posch and Clow competed at the 2005 Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tennis Championships held at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center at the University of Tulsa in Tulsa, Okla., Oct. 3 and 4.

Posch was defeated by Concado Henrique of Old Dominion 6-4, 7-5, 6-1, in the first round of qualifying singles. Posch and Clow were defeated in doubles action by Will Gray and Fredrico Soriano, 8-4.

The tournament featured the nation’s top collegiate tennis players including 128 singles players and 64 doubles teams split into a main draw and a qualifying draw.

At the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational held Oct. 7-9, at the Bill Moore Tennis Center in Atlanta, Ga., Clow was defeated by Andy Juc of Furman, 6-3, 6-0, in the second round of the Singles Flight A consolation bracket.

The Huskers concluded fall play at the Wilson/ITA Men’s Central Region Championships at the University of Tulsa, Oct. 20-24. Szatmary and Clow were both eliminated from the tournament in the quarterfinal round of the main draw singles at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center. Posch was defeated in the backdraw singles in the semifinal round.