10/30- Men's Tennis Hits the Road for Pair of Tournaments
Updated: October 30, 2008
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois men’s tennis team will split its roster to travel to a pair of tournaments this weekend. Sophomore Roy Kalmanovich and freshman Dennis Nevolo will head to Lexington, Ky., to take part in the highly competitive Charles Fluitt Invitational Nov. 1-2, while four other Illini are set for action at the Big 10 Singles Championships in Madison, Wis., Oct. 31-Nov. 3.
“This the last official weekend of the fall season and we are looking to finish on a strong note,” Illinois head coach Brad Dancer said. “In Kentucky, the guys will be in a loaded field of some of the top competitors from around the country. At the Big 10 Singles Championships, all are fighting for the prestigious singles title, and we are looking forward to a great overall weekend for the Orange and Blue.”
The 10th annual Fluitt Invitational will feature 16 top collegiate men from around the country at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex on the campus of the University of Kentucky, including No. 1 Oleksandr Nedovyesov of Oklahoma State University and No. 2 Denes Lukacs of Baylor. Other teams with participants at the Invitational include Illinois, Xavier, Tennessee, Baylor and host Kentucky.
Play will begin at 9 a.m. ET on Saturday and 8:30 a.m. ET Sunday at the Fluitt Invitational.
Other Illini will take part in the Big Ten Singles Championship hosted by the University of Wisconsin, Oct. 31-Nov. 3. Freshman Ruan Roelofse, sophomores Waylon Chin and Connor Roth and junior Meedo El Tabakh are all slated to compete in the singles main draw which begins Saturday, Nov. 1.
The 12-player qualifying draw will open the tournament on Friday with one round of play. The six players who remain after Friday’s play will be slotted into the main draw. The first and second rounds will be played on Saturday, with the third and quarterfinal rounds taking place on Sunday. The semifinal and final rounds of the championship will be played on Monday, Nov. 3 beginning at 9 a.m. The final day of competition will be aired on the Big Ten Network.
The last Illinois Big Ten Singles Champion was Michael Calkins in 2001.
For continued coverage of the Charles Fluitt Invitational, visit ukathletics.com for results, while uwbadgers.com is the official website for the Big 10 Singles Championships. A full recap will be available for both tournaments at fightingillini.com at the conclusion of the weekend.
