Baldwin Wallace University Men's Tennis Team Advances to its Third Straight OAC
Tournament Title Match; Faces Otterbein
BEREA, OHIO — The Baldwin Wallace University men's tennis team will Otterbein College today in the championship match of the 2005 Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament in Marietta, Ohio. The start time of the title match is dependent on the weather. If it is outdoors, it will begin at 1:00 p.m. If it is indoors, it will start at 3:30 p.m. The Yellow Jackets have played in the last two OAC title matches, winning once (last year) and losing once (in 2003).
"This is a great opportunity for our program," said Yellow Jacket Head Coach Brian Rector. "We are just pleased to be playing in our third straight OAC Championship match and to have the chance to win a second straight title. It is a credit to our outstanding senior leadership and some hard work by some very talented young men. We are looking forward to the challenge of playing Otterbein."
The Yellow Jackets enter the championship match at 22-2 overall and as both the two-time OAC regular season champ and last year's OAC tourney title winner. They have won 44 of their last 46 total matches, tied last year's school-record with their 22 wins (22-0 last year) and have won 23 straight OAC dual matches.
Three years ago, BW met Ohio Northern University in the OAC finals in Berea and ONU won on a tie-breaker in the last match for a 4-3 victory. Last year, the Yellow Jackets returned the favor in Ada when they shut out all three opponents, including the Polar Bears, 4-0, in Ada. BW won this year's regular season match in Berea, 5-2, at the "Pop" Collins Tennis Courts.
Highlighting the individual play this spring has been senior number one singles player Mike Wagner (Avon Lake), who owns a school-record 77 career wins and is 24-4 this season, and freshman No. 2 player James Daly (Akron/Firestone), who owns the single-season school-record with 29 victories and is 29-2 overall. In addition to Wagner and Daly, senior Ward Crane (Hudson/ Western Reserve Academy) enters his final OAC tourney with 62 career wins and is 18-4 this year; junior No.3 player Brandon May (New Philadelphia) is 17-1 overall, including 11-1 at No.4; senior No.4 player Adam Slabodnick (Ashland/ Senior) has 48 career wins and is 14-5 this year, including 7-2 at No.5; and sophomore No.5 player Ryan McCartney (Lorain/ Admiral King) is 13-4 overall, including 7-4 at No.6. Even senior Derek Sloan (Bellevue), who split time at No.6 with McCartney, owns 49 career wins.
In doubles action, the No.1 tandem of Wagner and Crane are 19-5, the No.2 pair of Daly and Slabodnick are a single-season school-record 22-2 and the No.3 team of May and Sloan are 8-6 overall.
FOR MORE BW SPORTS INFORMATION, please call Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327, FAX him at 440-826-2329 or e-mail him at kruple@bw.edu.
2005 OAC Tournament at Marietta College
Marietta, Ohio; Friday, April 29, 2005
Quarterfinal Match: Baldwin Wallace University -- 4, Capital University -- 0
SINGLES: No.1: Mike Wagner (BW) def. Robert Caress (C), 6-3, 6-2; No.2: James Daly (BW) def. Jeff Good (C), 6-1, 6-2; No.3: Ward Crane (BW) def. Jerrod Wagner (C), 6-0, 6-0; No. 4: Brandon May (BW) vs. Adam Lah (C), DNF; No.5: Adam Slabodnick (BW) vs. Aaron Jones (C), DNF; No. 6: Ryan McCartney (BW) vs. Patrick Chenault (C), DNF; DOUBLES: No.1: Wagner-Crane (BW) def. Caress-Good (C), 8-4 ; No.2: Daly-Slabodnick (BW) def. Wagner-Lah (C), 8-2; No.3: May-Derek Sloan (BW) vs. Jones-Chenault (C), 6-3, DNF.
Semifinal Match: Baldwin Wallace University -- 4, Mount Union College -- 1
SINGLES: No.1: Mike Wagner (BW) vs. Ryan Ruthsatz (MUC), DNF; No.2: James Daly (BW) def. Kyle Moreland (MUC), 6-3, 7-6 (9-7); No.3: Ward Crane (BW) vs. Kurt Davis (MUC), DNF; No. 4: Brandon May (BW) def. Jon Caporale (MUC), 6-3, 6-3; No.5: Adam Slabodnick (BW) def. Kevin Kreighbaum (MUC), 6-1, 6-1; No. 6: Ryan McCartney (BW) def. Adam Jaworski (MUC), 6-2, 6-1; DOUBLES: No.1: Wagner-Crane (BW) vs. Ruthsatz-Jaworski (MUC), DNF ; No.2: Moreland-Davis (MUC) def. Daly-Slabodnick (BW), 8-5; No.3: Caporale-Kreighbaum (MUC) def. May-Derek Sloan (BW), 8-4