TOPEKA, Kan. -- No. 15 Washburn men's tennis travels to Indianapolis on Friday for a road matchup against No. 7 Indianapolis and a neutral court match against No. 8 Wayne State on Saturday.
FIRST SERVE
- No. 15 Washburn will play a pair of ranked matches this week beginning with No. 7 Indianapolis on Friday, Feb. 9 at 3:30 p.m. on the road.
- They will finish the week against No. 8 Wayne State University on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. also in Indianapolis.
- The Ichabods are 1-0 on the year after a 7-0 win over Missouri - St. Louis on Saturday in the season-opener.
- The Greyhounds enter the match 2-0 on the year. The Warriors are also 2-0 going into the weekend.
- Friday will be the fourth all-time meeting between the Ichabods and Indianapolis with the Greyhounds leading the series 3-0.
- Saturday's match will be the 2nd meeting between Washburn and Wayne State with the Warriors leading the all-time series 1-0.
- The Ichabods are ranked No. 15 in the ITA Preseason rankings.
- Washburn went 17-8 in 2022-23 with a 3-1 record in the MIAA during the regular season. They won the MIAA Championship Tournament and advanced to the NCAA National Championships.
- The Ichabods return eight players from last season's roster while adding four freshmen and one transfer to complete the roster.
SINGLES SITUATION
- Washburn has three players ranked in the latest ITA singles rankings with Sebastian Pjontek at No. 10, Santiago Rendon just behind at No. 11 and Pavlos Parson checking in at No. 30.
- For the season the Ichabods are 61-24 (71.8%) in singles matches and are 6-0 in duals.
- Sebastian Pjontek is tied for the team lead with eight wins. He is 8-1 on the year all coming in tournaments.
- Pavlos Parson also has an 8-1 record, winning his last five matches. He is 1-0 from No. 2 this season.
- Santiago Rendon is 8-2 on the year and is 1-0 playing from No. 3.
- Moritz Pieper has a 7-1 record in singles matches after tournament play.
- Tim Hammes is 5-1 on the year and is 1-0 from the No. 1 spot so far.
- Daniel Bird has posted a 5-1 record this season with a 1-0 record at No. 4.
- Matthew Earle is 5-2 on the year and has gone 1-0 at No. 5.
- Tommy Cecchetti has gone 1-0 from the No. 6 spot and is 5-3 overall.
DOUBLES DOWNLOAD
- Washburn has one doubles duo ranked in the latest ITA doubles ranking with ITA Cup champions Tim Hammes and Santiago Rendon ranked No. 1 in the nation.
- On the year the Ichabods have gone 26-13 (66.7%) on the year with a 3-0 record in duals.
- Hammes and Rendon have the most wins of any Ichabod pair with a 7-4 record together, they have gone 1-0 at No. 1.
- Daniel Bird and Sebastian Pjontek are 5-1 together all coming in tournament play.
- Hammes leads all Ichabods with an 11-4 doubles record, he is 1-0 at No. 1.
- Rendon has the second most wins with a 7-4 record, also going 1-0 at No. 1.
- Both Pjontek and Bird are 6-1 overall in doubles.
- Ivan Ivanov and Daniel Harkin are both 4-1 on the year in doubles, all in tournaments.
LAST TIME OUT
Washburn 7, Missouri - St. Louis 0 (Feb. 3, 2024)
TOPEKA, Kan. -- No. 15 Ichabod men's tennis started its season of duals with a sweep of the University of Missouri – St. Louis on Saturday afternoon inside the Topeka Country Club. The next time the Ichabods get on the court will be in Indiana against the University of Indianapolis at 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9.
Doubles play moved quickly for Washburn starting on the top court with Tim Hammes and Santiago Rendon working a 6-2 win. Matthew Earle and Daniel Bird secured the doubles point for the Ichabods with a 6-2 win as well at No. 3. Tommy Cecchetti and Sebastian Pjontek completed the sweep of doubles winning 6-3 at No. 2.
Singles started at the top court as well with Hammes winning in two sets, 6-2, 6-1 to give Washburn a second point. Parson set up match point winning 6-4 and 6-3 sets at No. 2. Rendon clinched the match for the Ichabods with a two-set win on court three by scores of 6-3 and 6-1.
Cecchetti worked quick at No. 6, dropping only two set points with a pair of 6-1 victories. Bird continued the run of two-set victories winning 6-3 in both sets from No. 4. Earle finished off the sweep with 6-3 and 6-4 set wins from No. 5.
HEAD COACH KIRBY RONNING
- Ronning is in year four as the head coach of the men's and women's tennis teams at Washburn
- Has led both teams to the NCAA Tournament in every season at the helm with a 98-41 combined record with Washburn.
- Was named the ITA Central Region Coach of the Year on both the men's and women's side after the 2022-23 season.
- Prior to joining the Ichabods Ronning spent four seasons as the assistant coach at Azusa Pacific from 2016-2022
- As a player, he played for four years at Bethel University (Minn.). Ronning received his bachelor's degree in Business from Bethel in 2014 and earned his master's degree in Physical Education at Azusa Pacific in May 2020.
THE ASSISTANTS
- Graduate assistants Sofia Smagina and Casie Curry begin their first season on the Ichabod coaching staff while Kurt Reid and Raul-Alin Dicu enter their fifth and second seasons respectively.
- Kurt Reid enters his fifth season as an assistant with the Ichabods.
- He started his collegiate tennis career at Tulsa (1977-78) before transferring to Washburn for the 1978-79 season.
- Reid, a Topeka-native, played tennis at Topeka West High School and was elected to the Topeka West Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.
- Dicu enters his second season with Washburn and his first as a volunteer assistant after serving as a graduate assistant in 2022-23.
- Dicu finished his five-year career with Washburn in 2022 with a 56-45 singles record and 53-41 doubles mark. He is in the top-20 in singles and doubles wins in program history
- Former All-American Sofia Smagina joins the coaching staff after wrapping up one of the best seasons in Ichabod tennis history in 2022-23.
- Finished as the runner-up at the ITA Cup in singles and was named the MIAA Player of the Year while going 30-3 in singles and 26-5 in doubles in her one season at Washburn. Joined the Ichabods as a transfer from Kansas.
- Casie Curry rounds out the coaching staff as a graduate assistant after spending one season with Washburn in 2022-23.
- Curry received All-MIAA recognition in both singles and doubles while going 16-11 and 22-6 respectively. She joined the Ichabods after transferring from Midwestern State.
OPPONENT QUICK SCOUT - MATCH #2
ABOUT THE INDIANAPOLIS GREYHOUNDS
- Indianapolis is 2-0 on the year after a 6-1 win over Ferris State on Sunday.
- The Greyhounds are 2-0 inside of the UIndy Tennis Center.
- Indianapolis is ranked No. 7 in the latest ITA Rankings.
- Last season the Greyhounds went 23-3 overall and were 5-0 inside of the GLVC.
- UIndy has two players ranked in the ITA Singles rankings with Tom Zeuch at No. 2 and Mathieu Derachie coming in at No. 24.
- UIndy has gone 29-8 in singles matches this season (78.4%).
- Tom Zeuch has a 10-1 record to lead the Greyhounds, he is 2-0 from No. 1
- David Simeonov and Matthieu Derache both have seven singles victories this season.
- In doubles Indianapolis has gone 10-4 overall (71.4%).
- Pedro Franca and David Simeonov are 4-2 together to lead in victories.
- Tom Zeuch and Mattieu Derache are 2-0 together at No. 1.
GREYHOUNDS STAFF
- Malik Tabet is in his 12th season as the head coach of the men's and women's tennis teams at UIndy.
- Tabet made the transition to Indianapolis from Austin Peay State University where he served as the head men's and women's coach. Prior to that, Tabet had a six-year stint at Indiana State.
- Was named the National ITA Women's Coach of the Year in 2020-21.
- A 1999 magna cum laude graduate of the University of Mobile, Tabet earned a bachelor's degree in foreign languages and holds a master's in applied linguistics from the University of New Orleans
- Graduate assistant's Nastassia Chamoun, Carlos Thireau Cuco and Milan Jankovic round out the staff.
HISTORY WITH INDIANAPOLIS
- Washburn and Indianapolis have faced off three times in program history with the Greyhounds winning all three matches.
- The first match was on May 10, 2018 in Surprise, Ariz. and was a 5-1 win for UIndy.
- Last season Indianapolis won 5-2 over Washburn on Feb. 10, 2023 in St. Louis, Mo.
- Friday will be the first match that is not a neutral court match.
OPPONENT QUICK SCOUT - MATCH 3
ABOUT THE WAYNE STATE WARRIORS
- Wayne State is 2-0 to begin the year after a 4-3 win over Toledo on Friday, Feb. 2.
- The Warriors have not played a neutral court match this season.
- Last season Wayne State went 23-10 and 5-1 inside the GLIAC.
- The Warriors are ranked No. 8 in the latest ITA Rankings.
- WSU has gone 44-22 in singles matches this season (68.1%).
- Benjamin Hill leads Wayne State in singles with a 9-2 record, he is 2-0 in duals.
- Cedric Drenth is 6-2 this season with a 2-0 record at No. 2.
- In doubles the Warriors have gone 42-19 overall (68.9%).
- A pair of duo pairs are ranked in the ITA Doubles ranking with Cedric Drenth and Daniel Grey at No. 5 and Dom Spicer and Luke Laws ranked No. 13.
- Drenth and Grey are 15-2 together this season and have a 2-0 record at No. 1.
- Laws and Spicer have a 13-4 record together and are 2-0 at No. 2.
WARRIORS STAFF
- Bryan Morrow enters his 16th season as the head coach of the men's tennis program at WSU.
- Morrow has been the co-head professional and co-manager at the Peachtree Tennis Club in Clinton Township, for the past 10 years before joining the Warriors.
- Named the 2022 ITA National Coach of the Year.
- Graduated from Wayne State in 1991 with a degree in marketing sales management, Morrow became the ninth men's tennis player inducted into the Wayne State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003
- Assistant coach Ryan Stevens and volunteer assistants Bob Hartwick, Bob Jackson and Alex DeMuth round out the staff.
HISTORY WITH WAYNE STATE
- Washburn and Wayne State have only faced off once with the Warriors winning the one match.
- The Ichabods and Warriors met in the NCAA National Championship Round of 16 last season with Wayne State winning 4-2 to end Washburn's season.
MILESTONE MARKERS
SCHEDULE SPRING FORWARD
- Washburn returns back to Topeka its next time on the court to face MSU - Denver at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 17.
- The Ichabods begin MIAA play on March 28 against Augustana in Topeka.
- Senior day for Washburn will take place on April 26 against Nebraska-Kearney.
- The men's MIAA Tournament will take place in Edmond, Okla. from May 1 to May 3.
