Sept. 13, 2007
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Nashville, Tenn. — With the return of its top four players from a team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season and scored an upset win over No. 18 Tulsa, the Vanderbilt men’s tennis team is poised to take an even bigger leap this season.
Led by third-year head coach Ian Duvenhage, the Commodores finished the 2006-07 season with a No. 37 ranking and 11-13 overall record after advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time the past seven seasons.
Last season’s success at the NCAA Tournament has the Commodores brimming with excitement for the 2007-08 campaign.
“I think having the opportunity to play in the NCAA Tournament was huge,” Duvenhage said. “We’ve got the top four guys from the lineup at the NCAA Tournament back this year and the experience they gained from playing was invaluable. I also think that winning a first round match against a top-20 team (Tulsa) really showed us that not only are we capable of doing it, but I think it changes expectations for this year.”
Entering the year with an 18-27 record in two seasons at Vanderbilt and an overall mark of 370-197 in 22 seasons of coaching college tennis, Duvenhage is quick to point out that the process of building the foundation of the program for a long line of success is the priority over the number of wins and losses this season.
“Our whole program is very process oriented,” Duvenhage said. “We don’t get bogged down into results very much. I believe in the hare and the tortoise metaphor in that I think you have to avoid taking detours and regressing. I do believe that if the process is right and it is good than the results take care of them selves. When I came here two years ago, I did so because I felt that this is a program that can be in the top 10 year in and year out and if not the top 10 then at the very least top 20.”
In order for the Commodores to take that next step as a program, they must overcome any of the hiccups that may arise with seven out of the 10 players on the team being underclassmen. The only upperclassmen on the team are seniors Ryan Preston and Evan Dufaux and junior Nick Cromydas.
Despite the youth, Duvenhage believes this year’s team is more experienced than last year’s having advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
“Oddly enough, I think we are going to be a much more experienced team than we were last year in spite of how young we are,” Duvenhage said. “I think the returning guys have a much better idea of what this is all about and what it takes to be successful at this level. I’m a very big believer that on mature teams, most of the teaching that occurs happens through your upperclassmen or experienced leaders and I think those guys are able to point the younger guys in the right direction.”
Duvenhage and assistant coach Tom Boysen are already seeing the dividends on the practice court from last season’s success.
“I’m still doing exactly what I did last year, but in addition to Tom’s and my teaching, there is now the added component of our experienced players teaching the younger players,” Duvenhage said. “I’m not terribly concerned about our youth.”
On the court, the Commodores will be led by Preston, who is a two-time All-SEC selection. Last year, the Northbrook, Ill., native finished the season ranked No. 53 with a 15-17 record after playing the year as Vanderbilt’s No. 1 player. Preston also advanced to the NCAA Singles Championships for the second straight season.
“I know that Ryan (Preston) will tell you that he is very dissatisfied with the year he had last year,” Duvenhage said. “I have no doubt that he is going to have a great year. I’ve seen some things happen in practice that I think are tremendously positive. He is definitely one of the best players in college tennis and I think he is going to have a great year.”
Helping to lead the Commodores on the court with Preston will be junior Nick Cromydas. A native of Glenview, Ill., Cromydas played last season at the No. 2 position for Vanderbilt and finished the year ranked 122nd. Cromydas also pieced together an overall record of 16-13.
“Nick made such a huge jump after his freshman year,” Duvenhage said. “He played Nos. 5 and 6 for us as a freshman and for him to move all the way up to No. 2 in the lineup and have a good year for us was very impressive. He was very close to having a sensational year. He is a great competitor with great instincts on the court and he knows how to win. The main thing for him as it is for everyone is that I just want him to continue to progress.”
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In addition to the stellar play of Preston and Cromydas, sophomore Vijay Paul also had a strong freshman campaign and Duvenhage believes he is on the cusp of elevating his game to another level.
“Vijay had a great year last season,” Duvenhage said. “He went 8-3 in the SEC last year, but he needs to continue to grow. Just doing that again would not be progress. I’m looking for him to continue his progress.”
In addition to Cromydas, Paul, and Preston, the Commodores also return senior Evan Dufaux and sophomores Scott Lieberman and James Moye.
Joining the six returning letter winners is a talented freshmen class comprised of Adam Baker, Andy Pulido, Bryant Salcedo and Alex Zotov.
Making the largest impact so far has been Salcedo, a native of Boardman, Ohio.
“In the first few weeks of practice, Bryant (Salcedo) has been the best player on our team,” Duvenhage said. And for a freshman to come in and do that says a lot.”
A local product from Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Baker has also caught the eye of the Vanderbilt head coach.
“I knew that he was going to contribute and knew that he was going to be a really good college tennis player, but I guess if there has been a surprise it is how quickly it has happened,” Duvenhage said. “He literally is improving by the day. He is going to make a huge difference and contribute significantly. I think he is the quintessential college player because he is unique in that as a junior tennis player he played baseball and basketball, so he understands the team concept better than most tennis players, who only played tennis.”
Also making an immediate impact has been the play of Pulido, who hails from Texarkana, Texas.
“Andy (Pulido) has also been a surprise,” Duvenhage said. “Mechanically, he is sound. I like his energy and his intensity and athleticism but he has also exceeded my expectations to this point. I thought he was going to be a year away and he is much closer than I expected him to be.”
Rounding out Vanderbilt’s freshman class is Zotov, who is the Commodores lone international player. Zotov is a native of Minsk, Belarus.
“Alex has been a little up and down,” Duvenhage said. “And I guess part of that is to be expected because for him this is a much bigger adjustment than for anyone else. The other guys may not have firsthand experience with college tennis, but having lived in this country, they understand what collegiate tennis is all about. For Alex, this is totally new. We are going to give him a little time. When he has been good, he has been really good. We just have to get to the point where we get consistency.”
Having experienced the taste of postseason success last season, the Commodores are hungrier than ever entering this season.
“I think the biggest strength of the team is desire,” Duvenhage said. “I’ve never had a group of people that want it more than these guys and that is huge. I’ve had more talented teams in my life, but you feel like you want it more as a coach than the players do and these guys want it bad.” He added, “I felt like where we started from last year was a huge improvement over year one and this year needs to be a significant improvement over last year. When the year is over, I’d like to look back at it and say, `Okay we progressed significantly from year two to year three.'”