Sunday, October 17, 2010

IIAC Women's Individual

Michelle Schupbach/ Tai Lucero

Unseeded First-Year Tai Lucero captured the Iowa Conference A flight singles title by defeating teammate Hannah Jensen in the semi finals 63 61, and teammate Michelle Schupbach in the championship match 63 62. Hannah bounced back to win the 3rd place match 36 75 10-7 giving the Kohawks a one, two, and three finish! Michelle knocked off top seeded Molly Eslick of Wartburg 76 60 in her semi final and Tai earlier had defeated Luther's top player in her quarterfinal 62 61.

In doubles play Tai and Michelle defending their top seed handily, breezing through their draw with an 80 quarterfinal win, 84 in the semis and 85 in the final. Elizabeth Hoffmann and Natalie Bordignon teamed up to advance to the B doubles final winning four matches easily before falling in a close encounter in the championship match.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

On the Importance of the Off Season

As we are just days away from the Off-Season for both the Men's & Women's Teams it is important to focus on just how critical the Off Season is to the Individual & the Team.

Obviously without improvement from a collection of individual Team members, the Team cannot improve between now and February. Thus the improvement of each Team member becomes imperative to reaching the Goals and Potential of the Team as a whole.

In Tennis, there really is no off season. Little time away from the court, weight room or running track for those Individuals attempting to maximize their abilities. Each Individual MUST create their own "to-do" list for the time between October practices and January practices. Improved fitness, shot productions, competitive skills(i.e.-managing emotions) are all areas that need to be addressed for significant gains.

A true story I enjoy relating.....during my 1st year of college we had 24 team members. #24 was not very good and struggled to win games off of any other team member. In year #2, I defeated the former #24 in a close match for the final travel spot for Spring Break. In year #3, the former #24 was a NCAA quarter-finalist in singles and semi-finalist in doubles. All-American in both.

Truly demonstrating the importance of due diligence during the Off Season!

In this highly competitive program, those Individuals who prioritize their off season workouts are the student-athletes who will be playing, and playing well, this coming Spring

Monday, October 11, 2010

Kohawks Nab 2nd in Iowa Conference

The Coe College Women's Tennis team took home second place in the Iowa Conference Team Tournament held Saturday in Iowa City. With temperatures soaring near 90 degrees, Coe defeated Wartburg College in the semi-final morning match 5-2, before falling to top seeded Luther College in the afternoon final 5-1.

"Although we closed the gap in score in several of our five losing spots, in the end we just were not good enough on Saturday. Luther is a fine, veteran squad that is difficult to defeat. It will take improved racquet and competitive skills for us to challenge them this Spring in the NCAA qualifier, but I know our Team will work hard in that direction over the off-season."

This coming Friday and Saturday, the Ladies are back in action at the Iowa Conference Individual Championships held in Cedar Rapids. Play will be contested in A, B and C Singles, A and B doubles.

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Kohawks topple Rams!


In their final regular season dual match, the Women's Tennis Team knocked off Linn County rival, Cornell College by a 9-0 score. Within the lopsided final result were quite a few spirited, highly contested points and matches as the Rams kept the Kohawks on the court until the verge of sundown.
Doubles play was devoid of suspense(especially once pair #2 mentally engaged in the match!) and the onset of singles was routine as well. First-year's Elizabeth Hoffmann and Tai Lucero led the charge with quick victories at #6 and #3. Tai ran her W/L mark for her inaugural season to 19-2. Match play tightened up a bit at the remaining singles slots, as Cornell battled well. #4 Sara Ohlman finished next, followed by #2 Michelle Schupbach. Natalie Bordignon closed out a tight 2nd set at #5, before Hannah Jensen closed out the day's play with a win at #1.
Coe will next participate in the Iowa Conference Championships held this Friday/Saturday at the University of Iowa Tennis Complex in Iowa City. Coe is expected to receive the #2 seed today and would then likely play Wartburg College. The Kohawks just edged the Knights this past Saturday in Waverly, Iowa by a 5-4 score.

Monday, October 4, 2010

Kohawks Shine at ITA's!


The Coe Men's team concluded their Fall slate of play with the annual trip to St Peter, Minnesota for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional Tournament. with well over 20 schools participating, the individual tourney gives a good early indicator of the team strength in the Western portion of the NCAA Central Region. With a good off season of work, the Kohawks could break into the top 10 in the Central Region. Coe finished the 2009-10 season as the #13 squad.
Scott Stegemann led the way for the Kohawks, advancing to the quarterfinal round in singles play, and, with partner Curtis Newman, the semifinal round of doubles play. Scott's performance was the best Coe performance since Nick Barnes' quarterfinal/finals appearance in 2003. Along the way, Scott knocked off the #4 seed in an exciting match late Friday afternoon.
Victor Khristenko also advanced to Saturday play before falling to the eventual champion 62 64 in the Round of 16. Jonathan Roger & Kyle Tucker each won a match in the main draw singles, while Khristenko/Sean Stokstadt and Jeff Damisch/Michael Janssen won early rounds in doubles play.

Women Add 2 Wins!


On Saturday 10/2, in Waverly, Iowa, the Coe Women's Team added two more victories to the win column with a tight 5-4 win over host Wartburg, and a less stressful 8-1 over Wisconsin-River Falls.
Coe's #2 doubles(Hannah Jensen & Sara Ohlman) rallied from a 2-6 deficit for an 86 win giving Coe a 2-1 lead heading into singles play. After wins by Michelle Schupbach and Tai Lucero gave the Kohawks their 3rd and 4th points, senior Captain Natalie Bordignon found herself as the last match standing with the team score knotted at four apiece. Nat was able to rally from 35 in the first, for a 75 62 victory and securing the team win.
That gives Coe the edge in the battle for the #2 seed in the Iowa Conference Team tournament this upcoming weekend in Iowa City. Luther College has already secured the #1 seed, and Coe can nail down the #2 spot with a win today over Cornell College on the courts at the Clark Racquet Center.