Oct. 4, 2012
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – This first weekend of October is a busy one for the Notre Dame men’s tennis team as No. 24 Greg Andrews is set to begin play at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s All-American Championships on Thursday in Tulsa, Okla., while the rest of the Irish stay home for the annual Tom Fallon Invitational this weekend.
The 64-player singles tournament at the ITA All-American Championships is made up 48 automatic qualifiers and 16 at-large slots that were filled through qualifying rounds from Saturday, Sep 29 to Wednesday, Oct. 3.
Playing host to this year’s tournament is the University of Tulsa and the Michael D. Case Tennis Center, which boasts six indoor courts and 12 outdoor courts.
Andrews earned an automatic berth in the field and opens up against UCLA’s Clay Thompson (No. 29) at 11:30 a.m. (ET) and if victorious would play the winner of No. 9 Raymond Sarmiento (USC) and No. 52 Alexis Heugas (VCU) at 3 p.m. (ET). The third round is slated for Friday, with the quarterfinals and semifinals on Saturday. Sunday marks the championship match.
Andrews has already turned in an impressive fall as he was named the MVP of the OFCC Invitational three weeks ago in Olympia Fields, Ill. During the weekend the reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year knocked off three ranked foes.
Fans can follow Andrews’ progress through the ITA’s Tournament Central Page.
While Andrews is in Tulsa, the rest of the Irish squad will welcome some talented foes to the Courtney Tennis Center and the Eck Tennis Pavilion for the annual Tom Fallon Invitational.
Using last year’s rankings as a guide, the No. 29 Irish will be joined by No. 21 Michigan, No. 48 Alabama, No. 53 Michigan State and Northern Illinois.
Among the members of the team set to compete for Notre Dame is OFCC Invitational all-tournament team member Blas Moros and Vredevelt Invitational all-tournament team members Nicolas Montoya and Ken Sabacinski.
The three-day tournament gets underway on Friday at 3:30 p.m., with Saturday and Sunday getting underway at 9 a.m.
Fallon headed up the men’s tennis program from 1957-1987, compiling a career record of 514-194 (.726). Fallon coached seven All-Americans and led the Irish to a National Championship in 1959. Under his tutelage, Notre Dame won 12 Eastern Collegiate Championships and one Central Collegiate Championship. In 1986, he earned Midwestern Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year. The Irish sported undefeated seasons in 1959 and 1966, including an incredible 29-match winning streak from 1965-67. From 1957-61, Notre Dame won 30 consecutive home matches. For his efforts, Fallon was inducted into the ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 1988.
A complete recap of the ITA All-American Championships and the Tom Fallon Invitational will be available at the conclusion of each day on UND.com.
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