UCSD men’s
tennis served up a treat for fans last season when it jumped from
24 to 13 in the NCAA Division II national ratings.
They finished with an 18-5 regular season record and the top standing
in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The team, led
by head coach Eric Steidlmayer, made it to the playoffs in May, but
lost to No. 2 Hawaii Pacific University in the NCAA Regionals.
Steidlmayer
has led the team into the playoffs every season since UCSD’s
move from Division III to Division II in 2001. They were barely
edged out of the national championships by Division I
teams UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara, and lost by a narrow 4-3 margin
in both matches.
The Tritons proved their superiority in their own conference with
a perfect 7-0 CCAA record, overwhelming rivals Sonoma State, UC
Davis and Cal Poly Pomona. UCSD also boasted the top spot in the
California
Invitational
Tournament. It was the Tritons’ consistent play and big victories
that resulted in that huge jump in the national rankings.
Three Tritons
graduated in June 2003, including captain Michael Meyer. Despite
the loss of key players, Steidlmayer and his team are optimistic
about this season. At the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s
Western Regional Championship last October, junior Bryan Swatt
won the singles event and seniors Sameer Chopra and Jeff Wilson
captured
the doubles. In the ITA National Championship later that month
in Corpus Christi, Texas, Chopra and Wilson finished second while
Swatt
made the consolation finals. |
