Senior captain Patrick Buchanan and the Irish are aiming for their first-ever victories in both Austin and College Station.

#15 Notre Dame Hits The Road To Face #5 Texas And #22 Texas A&M

March 24, 2006

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#15 Notre Dame (13-5) vs. #5 Texas (9-1)Saturday, March 25, 1 p.m. (CT) • Penick-Allison Tennis Center • Austin, Texas- Live Scoring: texassports.com (also linked on und.com)
#15 Notre Dame vs. #22 Texas A&M (9-5)Sunday, March 26, 11:30 a.m. (CT) • Mitchell Tennis Center • College Station, Texas- Live Scoring: aggieathletics.com (also linked on und.com)

#15 IRISH HIT THE ROAD TO FACE #5 TEXAS AND #22 TEXAS A&M: The University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team (13-5) – which rose to its highest national ranking (15th) since 2001-02 this week – heads south again for two tough tests this weekend. The Irish will face #5 Texas (9-1) – which has won seven in a row – on Saturday at 1 p.m. (CT) before heading to 22nd-ranked Texas A&M (9-5) on Sunday for an 11:30 a.m. (CT) contest. Notre Dame will look to beat the Longhorns for the first time since 1993, though seven of the nine UT victories since then have come by 4-3 scores. It will the first-ever match at Texas A&M for the Irish, though they took part in NCAA competition in College Station in 2002.

IRISH-LONGHORNS SERIES NOTES: Notre Dame and Texas will meet for the second straight year and 12th time overall, with the Longhorns holding a deceiving 9-2 advantage in the series (see page 45 of the ND media guide for scores of every match), including nine consecutive victories … the last Irish win came in 1993, when sixth-ranked Notre Dame won 4-3 over #10 Texas in the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Louisville, Ky. … since then, the teams have played seven 4-3 matches, with the Longhorns prevailing in all of them … each of the last six meetings (datinb back to 1996) has ended with a 4-3 Texas victory … Notre Dame did win a 4-3 exhibition contest in the fall of the 1995-96 season at home … the Irish are winless in four trips to Austin … the schools first played in 1992, with 10th-ranked Notre Dame winning 8-1 at home … Texas broke through for its first victory in 1993, a 4-0 decision in Austin … the Longhorns won 4-3 in 1994, `96, `97, `98, `99, 2000, and `05 … a year ago, the match came down to No. 1 singles with the score tied 3-3, and current UT senior Callum Beale won 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 over Brent D’Amico to hand Notre Dame its first loss of the season … Texas won the doubles point, but the Irish went up 3-1 with a trio of straight-set victories in singles (Nos. 3, 4, 6) … the Longhorns then won in two tight sets at No. 2 and in three at Nos. 5 and 1.

IRISH-AGGIES SERIES NOTES: Notre Dame and Texas A&M will meet for just the fourth time, with the Aggies holding a 2-1 edge in the series (see page 45 of the ND media guide for scores of every match) … this will the the first-ever meeting in College Station, though the Irish traveled to Texas A&M for the NCAA Championships in 2002 … Notre Dame won the first matchup, prevailing 5-4 in the 1991 H.E.B. Championship in Corpus Christi, Texas … the Aggies won 5-1 in the quarterfinals of the 1999 Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic in Montgomery, Ala. … the most-recent match came in 2004, when ninth-ranked Texas A&M won 5-2 over #49 ND in the Eck Tennis Pavilion … the higher-ranked team has won every meeting.

ND UP TO 15th IN FILA COLLEGIATE TENNIS RANKINGS: Following a 4-1 week that included a trip to the title match of the prestigious Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic, Notre Dame moved up five spots to 15th in the latest Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings, released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) on Tuesday. It is the highest ranking for the Irish since finishing the 2001-02 season at 14th. This is the 11th season since 1990-91 in which Notre Dame has ascended into the national top 15. The Irish have been a constant presence in the national rankings during that time, with this week’s marking the 252nd consecutive set with Notre Dame included, dating back to March 2, 1990. In all, 20 of Notre Dame’s 24 regular-season opponents are listed among the 75 teams in this week’s rankings, with 11 of them in the top 25: #3 Illinois (L, 7-0), #4 Duke (L, 4-3), #5 Texas (Saturday, away), #7 Ohio State (W, 5-2), #11 Virginia (L, 4-3), #12 North Carolina (L, 4-3), #17 VCU (L, 4-2), #18 Louisville (April 13, home), #22 Texas A&M (Sunday, away), #23 Boise State (W, 4-3), and #24 Florida State (W, 4-3).

IRISH IN INDIVIDUAL ITA RANKINGS: Four singles players and two Irish doubles teams were listed in the latest individual national rankings, released March 21. Junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) leads the way at 14th in singles, with sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) at 34th, freshman Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) 106th, and junior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.) at 115th with his first career singles ranking. In doubles, Keckley is ranked with two different partners, appearing at 37th with senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.) and 45th with junior Barry King (Dublin, Ireland/Gonzaga College).

IRISH HEAD COACH: Bob Bayliss is in his 19th year at Notre Dame with a 340-162 (.677) record, while his 36-year career mark stands at 631-265-1 (.703). He is one of just six active NCAA Division I coaches to boast 600+ career victories. Bayliss has had just one losing season in his career and has seen his teams finish in the top 20 nine times, advancing to the NCAA round of 16 on five occasions, highlighted by a quarterfinal appearance in 1993 and a national runner-up finish in ’92. He also is one of just three coaches in Division I to have led his current team to 14 NCAA tournaments over the last 15 seasons. Bayliss, named national coach of the year in 1980 and ’92, is a four-time ITA Midwest Region coach of the year and 12-time conference coach of the year (five times in the last eight years in the BIG EAST, including 2004 and `05). In his time at Notre Dame, Bayliss’ teams have won 12 conference titles, while his players have earned All-America honors 17 times, won eight national ITA awards, and earned 16 invitations to the NCAA Singles Championship and 11 to the NCAA doubles tournament.

IRISH BOAST TWO AMONG NATION’S TOP 35 IN SINGLES: In the latest set of Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings, released on March 7, Irish junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) is 14th nationally in singles, while sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) is 34th. Notre Dame is one of only seven Division I schools (along with Baylor, Georgia, Illinois, Pepperdine, Stanford, and Texas) to have multiple players among the top 35 in the listing.

HELGESON AMONG NATION’S TOP FRESHMEN: Rookie Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) is 106th in the latest edition of the Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings, which stands 10th among freshmen. He is one of only four rookies from the United States to be nationally-ranked in singles, along with Stanford’s Matt Bruch (18th), Ohio State’s Bryan Koniecko (75th), and Blake Strode from Arkansas (102nd). Helgeson – who was listed 108th in the preseason after being the only college-bound player (and just the second ND recruit) to reach the quarterfinals of the USTA Super National Hardcourt Championships in Kalamazoo, Mich. – was 60th in the Feb. 22 rankings to become the highest-ranked Notre Dame rookie since Ryan Simme concluded 1993-94 at 52nd. Helgeson is in an elite group of just four Irish rookies to have been nationally-ranked in singles, joining Simme and All-Americans David DiLucia (class of `92) and Ryan Sachire (`00).

KECKLEY EARNS TOP-20 RANKING WITH FOURTH DIFFERENT PARTNER: Notre Dame junior Ryan Keckley (South Bend,Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.) – the 2002 Indiana state singles champion and a graduate of St. Joseph’s High School in South Bend – is the only Notre Dame player ever to be listed in the ITA national doubles rankings with four different partners, having earned a top-20 listing with each. He is currently listed 45th with classmate Barry King (Dublin, Ireland/Gonzaga College) – after being 20th on March 7 – as well as 37th with senior senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.), after that squad was 12th to start the spring. Keckley – who earned a national ranking in singles for the first time on March 21 (115th) – was first listed 18th with Luis Haddock following the fall of the 2003-04 season and then switched partners and peaked at 14th with Brent D’Amico later that spring.

ELEVEN ND OPPONENTS CURRENTLY IN TOP 25: Notre Dame’s success this season is even more impressive when considering that eleven of the teams on the spring schedule are currently in the top 25 of the ITA national rankings. The Irish have wins over three of those teams (#7 Ohio State, #23 Boise State, #24 Florida State) and all five of their defeats have come against squads in that group (#3 Illinois, #4 Duke, #11 Virginia, #12 North Carolina, #17 VCU). Notre Dame also has remaining matches against #5 Texas, #18 Louisville, and #22 Texas A&M.

KILLER KECKLEY: Junior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.), the 2002 Indiana state singles champion and a graduate of St. Joseph’s High School in South Bend, has been Notre Dame’s most-consistent winner in singles this spring, compiling a 16-2 mark in dual action (8-1 at No. 4, 8-1 at No. 5). That came after he had just an 11-8 record in dual singles play during the first two years of his collegiate career. This spring, Keckley has wins against #1 Virginia, #30 North Carolina, #9 Duke, and #11 Ohio State. He is 18-3 overall in singles in 2005-06 and earned his first career national singles ranking on March 21 (115th). Keckley also is nationally-ranked with two different partners in doubles.

STREAKS: The following streaks are active heading into this weekend:

– Notre Dame has won eight consecutive home matches. [last loss: 3/17/05 vs. #3 Illinois, 6-1]

– Notre Dame has won 22 consecutive matches when winning at No. 1 singles. [last loss: 4/4/04 at Virginia Tech, lost 4-3; Luis Haddock def. Andreas Laulund 6-3, 6-4 at No. 1]

– Stephen Bass has won 13 consecutive singles matches at home [last loss: 3/17/05 vs. Illinois’ Kevin Anderson 6-1, 6-4]

– Stephen Bass is 10-0 in singles in his career at the Courtney Tennis Center.

Sheeva Parbhu has won 12 consecutive singles matches at home [last loss: 3/17/05 vs. Illinois’ Monte Tucker 6-2, 7-5]

– Ryan Keckley has won five consecutive three-set matches with the dual-match outcome still undetermined [last loss: 4/3/05 vs. SMU’s David Kuczer 4-6, 6-4, 6-2]

– Ryan Keckley has won 11 consecutive home singles matches [last loss: 1/15/05 vs. Illinois State’s Alfredo Lagarda 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 1-0 (11-9)]

– Eric Langenkamp has won six consecutive singles matches. [last loss: 2/7/06 vs. Illinois’ Pramod Dabir 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (10-0)]

– Yuichi Uda has won six consecutive close sets (6-4, 7-5, or 7-6) [last loss: 10/15/04 vs. Wisconsin’s Brian Ko, 6-4 in third set]

– Yuichi Uda has won six consecutive singles matches at home [only career loss: 9/17/04 vs. Purdue’s Scott Warner 6-4, 7-5]

TOP WINS UNDER BAYLISS: See pdf for a list of Notre Dame’s 22 victories against top-11 teams during the tenure of head coach Bob Bayliss, ordered by opponent ranking.

LONGEST IRISH WINNING STREAKS: See pdf for a list of the longest winning streaks in the 84-year varsity history of Notre Dame tennis.

IRISH KNOCK OFF OHIO STATE: After three close calls earlier this spring, Notre Dame finally broke through with a big victory, beating then-#11 Ohio State 5-2 on Feb. 24 in the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The match snapped a 17-match losing streak for ND against top-15 squads, and OSU was the highest-ranked team to fall victim to the Irish since Notre Dame won 4-3 at #5 Illinois on March 7, 2002. It marked the third time that a team ranked among the nation’s top 11 lost at Notre Dame – the first since #8 Duke lost 4-3 to the 29th-ranked Irish in the Eck Tennis Pavilion on Feb. 16, 1997. This victory also was just the third time that ND beat a top-11 team without being listed in the top 20 itself. The Buckeyes are now ranked an all-time high of #7.

ND SUFFERS A TRIO OF 4-3 LOSSES TO TEAMS CURRENTLY IN TOP 15: Three of Notre Dame’s four defeats this season have come by 4-3 scores on the road against teams currently ranked among the national top 15. The Irish were up 3-2 against #1 Virginia (now ranked 11th) on Jan. 27 in Richmond, but lost three-set affairs at No. 1 (6-4 in the third set after serving with a service break at 4-3) and No. 2 (6-4 in the third set). On Feb. 4, Notre Dame lost three-set matches at No. 1 (6-4 in the third) and No. 3 (6-3 in the third) to lose 4-3 at #30 North Carolina (now ranked 12th). A day later, the Irish won three-setters at Nos. 2 and 5 to tie the score 3-3 against #9 Duke (now fourth), but the Blue Devils won in three sets at No. 1 (6-3 in the third) to avoid the upset.

LET’S PLAY THREE … PLEASE!!: Notre Dame players have combined to win 70% of their three-set matches this season, compiling a 33-14 record. Leading the way is junior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.), who is 7-1 – including 6-0 this spring, all with the dual outcome undetermined – while sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) stands 7-2, including 4-1 when the dual winner is not yet decided, and freshman Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) is 4-2 in three-setters (3-1 in dual action with the team outcome not yet determined).

ROCKING THE REGION: Irish competitors have combined to win 78% of their singles matches against other players from the ITA’s Midwest Region, which includes most of the Big Ten Conference and other area squads. Notre Dame players have a 83-24 singles record vs. regional foes and are 7-1 in dual matches this spring against that group, having lost only to #3 Illinois. No ND student-athlete has lost more than three times against the region this season, and Irish junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) – who became the first ND player since 1993 to win the singles title in the ITA Midwest Championships in October – leads the way with a 17-1 mark (the lone defeat coming against Illinois’ Kevin Anderson, currently ranked #6). Sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) is 15-2 against regional opponents, while freshman Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) is 12-3. Notre Dame also excelled in singles against the region a year ago, combining for a 104-37 (.738) mark in 2004-05.

CLINCHING PARBHU: Sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) has delivered the decisive blow to opponents on five occasions, all against Big Ten Conference opponents: vs. Northwestern, Purdue, Michigan State, #11 Ohio State, and Indiana. He is just one shy of the Irish record for most match-clinching wins in a season since the statistic debuted in 1999. Andrew Laflin posted six clinching wins in 1999-2000, while Javier Taborga had six in 2001-02.

IRISH GO 7-1 vs. THE BIG TEN: Notre Dame played eight matches against members of the Big Ten Conference this spring, winning all but a road contest against #3 Illinois. The Irish upset #11 Ohio State by a 5-2 score and also beat Michigan 5-2. Notre Dame won 7-0 against Michigan State and 6-1 vs. Northwestern, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Indiana.

KECKLEY/KING KNOCK OFF NATION’S #1-RANKED DOUBLES TEAM: Notre Dame juniors Barry King (Dublin, Ireland/Gonzaga College) and Ryan Keckley (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.) posted an 8-4 victory over the #1-ranked team in college tennis, North Carolina’s Raian Luchi of Romania and Brad Pomeroy, on Feb. 4 at the No. 1 position. It was the first time an Irish doubles team had knocked off the nation’s top-ranked squad since Feb. 18, 1993, when Chuck Coleman and Will Forsyth prevailed 8-3 against Anders Eriksson and Trey Phillips of Texas at No. 1 in the opening round of the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Louisville, Ky. Notre Dame, ranked sixth at the time, went on to win the match 4-3 against the 10th-ranked Longhorns. This season’s win marked the first time King had upset a nationally-ranked team in doubles during his collegiate career, while Keckley – who is currently ranked 12th nationally with senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.) – has five to his credit.

HELGESON POSTS HIGHEST-RANKED ND SINGLES WIN SINCE 2000: Freshman Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) knocked off Virginia sophomore Treat Huey 6-7, 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4 singles in dual-match action on Jan. 27. Huey was ranked #6 in the national singles rankings, making him the highest-ranked player to fall victim to a Notre Dame student-athlete since Javier Taborga beat then-#3 K.J. Hippensteel of Stanford on Oct. 12, 2000, in the second round of the ITA All-American Championships.

BASS, PARBHU EXCEL IN NATIONAL INDOORS: Junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) and sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) combined to make Notre Dame one of only two schools (along with Stanford) to have multiple players among the final 16 in the season’s second grand slam, the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships. Bass knocked off the tournament’s No. 6 seed to become just the second Notre Dame player (along with Ryan Sachire in 2000) ever to reach the quarterfinals of the event. Just six schools – Duke, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Stanford, and Virginia – qualified two players for the 32-player singles draw (none had more than two). This season marked the fourth time – all since 1992 – that Notre Dame has had multiple players in the men’s singles draw of the National Indoor Championships, but the first since 1995. This was the first time that both reached the round of 16.

BASS, PARBHU COMBINE FOR FIRST ALL-IRISH SINGLES FINAL IN ITA MIDWEST CHAMPIONSHIPS: Junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) prevailed against his teammate, sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) in the first-ever all-Irish singles final of the Wilson/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Midwest Championships. No ND player had reached the singles final of that event – which features the top talent in the ITA’s Midwest Region – since 1996 (Ryan Sachire), and Bass became the first Irish victor since Andy Zurcher did so in 1993. Bass came away with a 7-5, 6-2 victory in the championship match to snap Parbhu’s 17-match winning streak and join an elite club of just four Notre Dame players who have won that singles title. Notre Dame was the only school to have two players in the quarterfinals, and that duo kept winning. Bass – a semifinalist in 2004 – is the fifth Irish player to reach the semifinals of the ITA Midwest Championships multiple times.

TERRIFIC TRIO: The 2005-06 campaign marks the first time ever that Notre Dame had three different players compete in singles action in grand slams in the fall semester. Senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.) participated in the singles main draw of the season’s first grand slam, the Polo Ralph Lauren ITA All-American Championships, while junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) and sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) played in the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships.

IRISH BOAST FOUR AMONG TOP 25 SINGLES PLAYERS IN MIDWEST REGION: Notre Dame joined Ohio State as the only schools with four or more singles players listed among the top 25 in the ITA’s Midwest Region rankings, released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) in December. Junior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, N.Y./Iona Preparatory School) led the way at #2, while sophomore Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, Neb./Millard North H.S.) was fifth, freshman Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West H.S.) was 13th, and senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.) was 22nd. Junior Barry King (Dublin, Ireland/Gonzaga College) would have been ranked, but was listed as having insufficient data since he did not play collegiately during the fall. Bass is the highest-ranked Irish player in the regional singles rankings since Ryan Sachire finished his career in 1999-2000 at #1, which concluded a decade-long span in which ND boasted the region’s top singles player in every season but one. In an almost-unbelievable turn, Langenkamp and junior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s H.S.) were listed just 13th in the regional doubles rankings determined by a committee of head coaches, despite having wins over the teams ranked #2 and #5 in the region and coming in 12th in the national rankings (determined by the ITA’s computer formula).

LANGENKAMP WINS ITA SUMMER NATIONALS: Senior Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale H.S.) claimed the singles title in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Summer Championships, presented by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) last month at Indiana University. Among the highlights of his run were wins against Steven Peretz (who played Nos. 4-6 for Michigan last spring), Ryan Preston (Nos. 4-5 for Vanderbilt in ’05), top-seeded Paul Rose (Purdue’s No. 1 player who is ranked 54th in the preseason ITA listing), Will Gray (Nos. 3-6 for Tulsa in ’05), and Eric Hechtman (Nos. 2-3 for Miami in `05). The championship earned Langenkamp – who combined with sophomore Yuichi Uda (Wesley Chapel, Fla./Laurel Springs School [CA]) to make Notre Dame the only school with two players among the final 16 in the singles draw – wild-card entry into the main draw of the first grand slam of the 2005-06 collegiate season, the Polo Ralph Lauren ITA All-American Championships. It was the first time an Irish player ever won a title in the tournament.

BUCHANAN SERVES AS SOLE TEAM CAPTAIN: Senior Patrick Buchanan (Fullerton, Calif./Servite H.S.) was voted team captain for the 2005-06 season. Following three straight years in which Notre Dame had multiple team captains – the only such span in the history of the program – the Irish have now returned to their tradition of having a single team captain. In 84 years of varsity tennis, Notre Dame has had just one team captain in all but 10 seasons, with the most-recent solo captain being Casey Smith in 2001-02. He concluded a 32-year stretch in which all but two seasons saw Notre Dame have exactly one captain.

DOEBLER PROMOTED TO ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH: Todd Doebler was promoted to associate head coach of the Irish men’s tennis team, it was announced in January. Now in his fourth year on the coaching staff at Notre Dame, he is the first associate head coach in the history of the program, as well as one of just five currently in the Irish athletic department.

IRISH INK SEAN CORRIGAN FOR NEXT SEASON: Long Island’s Sean Corrigan (Lido Beach, N.Y./Long Beach H.S.), who was ranked among the top 25 in the nation in both singles and doubles at the end of 2004, signed a national letter of intent during the early period to enroll at the University of Notre Dame next fall and join its men’s tennis team. Corrigan, a senior at Long Beach High School, finished 2004 ranked 24th in the United States Tennis Association’s (USTA) boys’ 16-and-under national rankings in singles, as well as 22nd in doubles (first in the Eastern Section). In prep action, he went undefeated at No. 1 singles last spring for Long Beach.

DAVID DiLUCIA NOW PERSONAL COACH FOR LINDSAY DAVENPORT: A five-time All-American during his four-year career at Notre Dame (1988-92), David DiLucia, left his job with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) in December 2005 to become the personal coach of the world’s #1 women’s player, Lindsay Davenport. DiLucia was ranked #1 in both singles and doubles during his collegiate career and then went on to play in the singles main draw in all four professional grand slams before retiring in 2002. During his pro career, DiLucia earned wins over players such as Gustavo Kuerten, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Mark Philippoussis, and David Wheaton.

BAYLISS HONORED BY NAVAL ACADEMY: Notre Dame head coach Bob Bayliss was recognized recently by the United States Naval Academy, where he was the head tennis coach for 15 years, as well as the school’s head squash coach for four seasons. Navy named one of its varsity tennis courts in his honor and also dedicated a plaque in its squash facility on the occasion of the return to campus by Bayliss, who posted a 19-0 record against Army during his tenure in Annapolis. The long-time Irish mentor visited the Naval Academy during the weekend of Nov. 5, which also featured the football team’s homecoming game, a 49-21 win over Tulane. Though the tennis court had been dedicated previously – when Bayliss was unable to attend – there was a small ceremony held to show it to him. The weekend also featured the squash team’s annual alumni match, the Bowen Cup, and the dedication of a new plaque honoring Bayliss’ service to that team.

BAYLISS AT WIMBLEDON: Notre Dame head coach Bob Bayliss headed to London, England, last June to participate in a High Performance Continuing Education Program, which was organized by the USA Tennis Coaching Education Department and held in conjunction with The Championships Wimbledon. A total of 15 American coaches who work primarily with junior players took part, with the intent of continuing to work toward the program’s ultimate goal of developing world-class American champions. Bayliss was selected to participate in the continuing education program out of a pool of applicants of coaches who work with talented and highly-ranked junior players.

ND STILL #1 IN NACDA DIRECTORS’ CUP: Notre Dame is in first place in the most-recent set of standings in the 2005-06 United States Sports Academy Directors’ Cup all-sports competition sponsored by the National Association of Collegiate Dirctors of Athletics (NACDA), which were released on March 23 and included results from all fall sports, as well as winter competition in fencing, rifle, skiing, women’s swimming, men’s wrestling, and men’s and women’s indoor track and field. Fall NCAA competition earned the Irish 412 points based on their third-place finish in men’s cross country (85 points), their seventh-place finish in women’s cross country (69 points), their quarterfinal appearance in women’s soccer (73), their third-round appearance in men’s soccer (64), their regional semifinal appearance in women’s volleyball (64) and their 11th-place finish in football based on the final USA Today poll (57). So far this winter, the Irish have earned 133 points based on their fourth-place finish in fencing (40 points), a 33rd-place finish in men’s indoor track and field (39.5), a 39th-place finish in women’s indoor track and field (32.5), and a 41st-place finish in women’s swimming (21). This was the second straight year Notre Dame has ranked atop the final fall standings – and its 412 points were its highest-ever fall total. Stanford (536.5 points) is second, followed by Penn State (521.25), Texas (494.5) and Wisconsin (491). Notre Dame finished 16th in 2004-05, its fifth consecutive top-20 placing, and has three times finished an all-time high of 11th (1993-94, `95-96, 2000-01).

KEEPING UP WITH NOTRE DAME TENNIS: For the fastest results of Notre Dame tennis matches, call the Notre Dame sports hotline at (574) 631-3000 and choose #8. The hotline provides schedule and results information for varsity sports and serves as a supplement to the game recaps and weekly releases provided on the official athletic website at www.und.com. The hotline is the first medium updated with the results of each Notre Dame tennis match. In addition, media members and fans may be added to the sports information e-mail release list by contacting Bo Rottenborn at Rottenborn.2@nd.edu, who also can provide any information about the Irish tennis program.