Conference Carolinas

Limestone Ranked First in Men’s Tennis Coaches Preseason Poll

1/28/2014 12:00:00 AM

 

High Point, NC – Conference Carolinas Men's Tennis Coaches have voted Limestone College as the top men's tennis team coming into the 2014 season.

With a No. 37 national ranking to start this season and coming off of their first NCAA Tournament win and first Conference Carolinas Tournament Championship a year ago, Limestone has been picked as the regular season favorite in the league's annual preseason poll.

While the Saints certainly have large shoes to fill with the departure of doubles All-Americans Carlos Yanes and Rafael Ferla, they have more than capably filled those holes with a mix of returnees and impressive newcomers.

Back from last year's team that went 19-8 overall and 9-1 in league play are three players that all won at least 15 singles matches. That group is headlined by senior Antoine Le Dore who earned All-Conference Carolinas Third-Team and All-Tournament honors after going 18-6 at No. 4 singles and 12-4 at the No. 2 doubles position.

Joining him is sophomore Benji Lascari Diaz, who notched a stellar 19-7 singles record, and junior Lucas Guinski who was 15-7 at the No. 3 spot in singles and 12-5 at No. 2 doubles. Complementing this group of top returnees will be freshman Stefano Soares and Giacomo Campus, both of whom are expected to contribute to this year's team's success.

Voted to finish second, Mount Olive returns five full or part-time starters from last year's squad, which earned a top 50 national ranking and posted an overall record of 13-6. The Trojans finished third in the Conference Carolinas standings with an 8-2 mark and reached the semifinals of the conference tournament.

Two-time All-Conference Carolinas First Team selection Edgar Bub has played at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles in each of his first two years at Mount Olive. Bub was named Most Valuable Player of the 2012 Conference Carolinas Men's Tennis Tournament as he helped lead Mount Olive to its first-ever conference championship.

Also returning 2013 All-Conference Carolinas selections Brahm Moolman and Henric Falkenburg, along with Rik Wolthuis and Stan Roffe. Moolman also earned All-Conference Carolinas and All-Tournament honors in 2012. After sitting out last year as freshman, Matthew Finnerty defeated three of the top four seeds to capture the Group A singles title in a conference-wide tournament during the fall.

Following a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals of the 2013 Conference Carolinas Tournament and a fourth place finish in conference play, the Pfeiffer University men's tennis team has been picked to finish third in 2014 by a preseason coaches' poll.  Returning nearly an entire roster of players that finished the 2013 season with records of 12-7 overall and 6-4 in the conference, the Falcons are poised for a deep run into the postseason.

One of those returning players, a 2013 All-Conference First Team selection, is sophomore Loic Minery.  Finishing the season with only two singles losses, Minery went 14-0 in non-conference play and 14-2 overall.  Minery began the 2013 season on a nine-game win streak, won five of his last six singles matches, and finished 8-2 in conference play.  Also a force in doubles play, Minery went 15-2 overall and won his last six doubles matches.

Minery will get help from junior Stephen Miller who finished the 2013 season with an overall record of 10-4 and a conference record consisting of five wins and three losses.  Miller wrapped up 2013 victorious in seven of his last nine singles matches.  At the helm of the Falcon vessel is first year head coach Justin Fainter.  Fainter comes to Pfeiffer following two stellar years as the tennis coach at Roanoke College.

Erskine finished fourth in the poll with King fifth followed by Barton, North Greenville, Belmont Abbey, and Lee-McRae College respectively rounding-out the poll standings.

 

Conference Carolinas Men's Tennis Pre-Season Poll        

(# of First Place Votes in Parenthesis)