Austin Coffey

Eagles Continue Defense of TSC Title at Webber International

4/2/2014 12:13:00 PM

Patrick Besch (left) and Jaime Sanchez-Canamares Rios (right)

EMBRY-RIDDLE

(10-3) RANK: 1st

(10-6) RANK: 22

MATCH CENTRAL
No. 1 Embry-Riddle vs. No. 22 Webber International
DATE: Thursday, April 3, 2014
SITE: Babson Park, Fla.
TIME: 1 p.m.
SERIES: ERAU leads 21-15
LAST MEETING: ERAU def. WIU 5-0 on April 20, 2013

FIRST SERVE
• Embry-Riddle Men's Tennis is in its 26th season of competition
• Dave Paschal is in his 10th season as the Eagles' head coach
• Webber International cracked into the NAIA's Top 25 for the first time this season on April 1.

THE EAGLES
Embry-Riddle maintained its No. 1 ranking for the eighth straight week. The defending Sun Conference champions, the Eagles own a 2-0 record in league play after notching wins against St. Thomas and 24th-ranked Northwood. The Eagles' only losses on the year have been to defending NCAA II national champion and top-ranked Barry, NCAA II No. 4 Lynn and NCAA II No. 8 Saint Leo.

Deni Zmak leads the Eagles with 24 singles wins for a 24-3 record, while Simon Felix is second with a 17-3 singles ledger. Zmak and Felix have also combined for a team-best 22-4 doubles mark.

WEBBER INTERNATIONAL
Ranked No. 22 in the latest NAIA National Coaches Top 25 poll, the Warriors of Webber International bring a 10-6 overall record into Thursday's match. WIU is 4-1 in league play following a pair of 6-3 victories against Northwood (March 29) and SCAD Savannah (March 30).

THE ERAU-UNOH SERIES
The Eagles and the Warriors have been doing battle in men's tennis since 1992. ERAU leads the series 21-15, including last year's 5-0 win in the semifinals of The Sun Conference tournament.

The Last Meeting
The Eagles, ranked No. 1 in the NAIA, earned the right to play in the championship match of the 2013 Sun Conference Tournament with a 5-0 win over fourth-seeded Webber International (11-12) at the Crotty Tennis Complex on April 13.

In his first match back since suffering an injury early in the spring, defending ITA National Singles Champion Patrick Besch teamed up with J.R. Leonik for an 8-1 defeat of Jonathan Cohen and Milo Quiroz at No. 2 doubles. Simon Felix and Kevin Chauoat followed with an 8-0 shutout of Patricio Henning and Firmian Filho at No. 3 and the top-ranked duo of Chris Freeman and Deni Zmak dispatched Nickolay Kodinov and Alwin Leysner 8-1 at the top spot to give the Blue and Gold a 3-0 lead heading into singles.

Freshman Anthony Grasso was the first to complete his singles match as he dispatched Leysner 6-1, 6-1 at No. 3 singles. Playing at the top spot in the lineup, third-ranked Zmak bested Kodinov 6-1, 6-0 to clinch the win and secure the Eagles' spot in the tournament championship.

BY THE NUMBERS
369 - All-time wins in ERAU Men's Tennis history
185 - Eagle victories under guidance of Head Coach Dave Paschal
66 - Conference wins in program history
14 - NAIA National Tournament appearances
10 - Seasons of competition with Dave Paschal at the helm
10 - Regular season conference championships
6 – Individual singles national titles
5 – Conference tournament titles
3 – Individual doubles national titles
1 – NAIA National team title

EAGLES IN THE RANKINGS
The Eagles are ranked No. 1 in the NAIA Men's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 poll, marking the ninth consecutive season that ERAU Men's Tennis is ranked among the nation's top five. The Eagles have three student-athletes ranked among the nation's Top 50, including No. 1 Deni Zmak, No. 24 Jaime Sanchez-Canamares Rios and No. 38 Simon Felix. Zmak and Felix also comprise the top-ranked doubles team in the nation.

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