Khristenko to IIAC Semifinals

The Men's Tennis Team participated in their 2nd tournament of the Fall season, the Iowa Conference Individual Championships held this past weekend in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Junior Victor Khristenko advanced to the semifinals of the A singles flight where he was edged 62 75 by nationally ranked Scott Sundstrom. Victor went on to capture 3rd place in the annual event. VK teamed with first-year Sean Stokstad to finish 3rd in Flight A doubles as well.

In the B Flight first year Michael Janssen was the standout for Coe, easily capturing the singles title and teaming with fellow first-year Alex Klaas to finish 2nd in B doubles. In the C flight Michael Woolf was crowned champion, giving Coe its first C flight champion since 1998. Sixteen Coe players participated in the IIAC Championships, a record number of Coe players in the event.

Next Coe will send eight of their top players to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional Championships in St Peter, Minnesota. Play will begin in this annual event on Friday, October 1st. Over 20 schools will be represented in the 128 singles draw.

Jensen to ITA Regional Semifinals

Coe College Senior Hannah Jensen advanced to the semifinals of the annual Intercollegiate Tennis Association(ITA) Regionals held this past weekend in St Peter, Minnesota.

Hannah defeated Kelly Stadum of LaCrosse 76, 63, Allie Hinman of Stout 62 64, and Alex Erickson of Gustavus 46 64 11-9, before falling to eventual champion Sam Frank of Gustavus 64 63.

Michelle Schupbach advanced to the round of 16 before falling 62 76 to finalist Megan Gaard of Gustavus. Tai Lucero and Michelle won the consolation doubles bracket with wins over Hamline, Whitewater, Grinnell and LaCrosse.

KOHAWK MEN in BRADLEY CLASSIC

The Kohawk Men's Tennis team participated in the Prairie Hotels Tennis Classic hosted by Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. Coe was the only NCAA D3 school in the field of five. While victories for the Kohawks against the NCAA D1 competition were few and far between, we did pick up over 50 matches of invaluable experience. Senior Captain, Scott Stegemann led the Kohawks with a 3-1 singles record at the #4 flight to place 2nd.

Complete Results can be found here: http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=25971&SPID=1508&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204995516

This week, in Cedar Rapids, the entire Coe Men's Tennis roster will be participating in the Iowa Conference Individual Championships. Play will occur in A, B, C Singles and A, B Doubles.

IIAC Champs Edge Kohawks

Defending Iowa Conference Champion, Luther College, edged the Coe College Women's Tennis team Sunday afternoon 5-4, on the indoor courts of Clark Racquet Center. In a match that came down to the #5 singles flight, our young Kohawks grew up a lot as they tangled with the experienced, nationally ranked Norse. Coe won four of the five closely contested matches, and I saw enough from a couple more lineup spots to give me more than a glimmer of hope that, with continued improvement in our competitive skills, we could have a chance to defeat IIAC favorites, Luther and Wartburg, if we get the opportunity.

LUTHER COLLEGE NORSE 5 COE COLLEGE KOHAWKS 4

Singles competition

1. Hannah Jensen (COEW) def. Fran Fairfield (LUTW) 4-6, 7-5, 10-3

2. Michelle Schupbach (COEW) def. Alana Humpal (LUTW) 6-4, 6-0

3. Tai Lucero (COEW) def. Cassandra Chalhoub (LUTW) 2-6, 6-3, 18-16

4. Brynne Zinnecker (LUTW) def. Sara Ohlman (COEW) 6-1, 6-0

5. Elise Allen (LUTW) def. Natalie Bordignon (COEW) 6-2, 6-2

6. Katy Lindstrom (LUTW) def. Elizabeth Hoffmann (COEW) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles competition

1. Tai Lucero/Michelle Schupbach (COEW) def. Alana Humpal/Brynne Zinnecker (LUTW) 9-7

2. Fran Fairfield/Katy Lindstrom (LUTW) def. Hannah Jensen/Sara Ohlman (COEW) 8-4

3. Elise Allen/Cassandra Chalhoub (LUTW) def. Natalie Bordignon/Elizabeth Hoffmann (COEW) 8-1

Men to Open Fall Campaign

Senior Captain, Scott Stegemann will lead the Kohawks in their first Fall action this weekend. Coe will be traveling to Peoria, Illinois to participate in the Bradley Classic. Participating schools include NCAA D1 programs, Northern Illinois, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, St Louis, host school Bradley, and the NCAA D3 Kohawks. The tournament consists of eight singles flights and four doubles flights.

Scott is an Iowa Conference Doubles Champion from Davenport, Iowa and and will be partnered this weekend with sophomore Curtis Newman. Scott has 115 career wins as a Kohawk entering his senior season, good for 15th place all time. Other participating team members include juniors Victor Khristenko and Jonathan Roger, sophomore Kyle Tucker, and first-year's Sean Stokstadt, Michael Janssen, and Alex Klaas.

On September 24th the Coe Men will participate in the Iowa Conference Individual Tournament in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and the Fall season will conclude on October 1st with the ITA Regional Tournament in St Peter, Minnesota.

Kohawks top Grinnell 6-3!

Natalie Bordignon & Coach Kris plot strategy on a changeover. Natalie clinched the match for Coe with her straight set win at #5 singles.

The Kohawks will host defending Iowa Conference champion Luther College on Sunday, September 19th at 1pm. The Norse are coming off a 7-2 win over Conference co-favorite Wartburg College.

Coe College 6, Grinnell College 3 Sep 11, 2010 at Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Clark Racquet Center)

Singles competition

1. Hannah Jensen (COEW) def. Toby Cain (GC) 6-2, 6-4

2. Michelle Schupbach (COEW) def. Constanza Alarcon (GC) 6-1, 6-3

3. Tai Lucero (COEW) def. Clothilde Thirouin (GC) 6-4, 7-6

4. Morgan Counts (GC) def. Sara Ohlman (COEW) 3-6, 6-1, 12-10

5. Natalie Bordignon (COEW) def. Hanna Feldman (GC) 6-4, 6-3

6. Catherine Fitch (GC) def. Elizabeth Hoffmann (COEW) 6-1, 6-4

Doubles competition

1. Michelle Schupbach/Tai Lucero (COEW) def. Toby Cain/Clothilde Thirouin (GC) 8-3

2. Hannah Jensen/Sara Ohlman (COEW) def. Constanza Alarcon/Catherine Fitch (GC) 8-5

3. Morgan Counts/Hanna Feldman (GC) def. Elizabeth Hoffmann/Natalie Bordignon (COEW) 9-7

Opening Day

KOHAWKS OPEN WITH TWIN 9-0 IIAC WINS!

Opening the Fall campaign on the road with conference dual matches with an inexperienced team would generally be a recipe for disaster. The 2010 Coe Women gave their first indication that they can be counted on to do the unexpected by posting twin shutouts, beating Central College and Simpson College 9-0.

First-Years Tai Lucero and Elizabeth Hoffmann got their Kohawk careers off to 4-0 starts, and Tai blanked her opponents in three of her four matches.

IIAC Update--All nine conference teams played matches in the first few days of September. Conference favorites Luther College and Wartburg College did nothing to dispel their pre-season hype as Luther lost by the slimmest of margins to nationally ranked Wheaton College, while Wartburg lost only 24 total games in 27 matches while running their W-L to 3-0.

Kohawk Update--Coe has its home opener Saturday, September 11th at 10:30am against Midwest Conference power Grinnell College. Grinnell is off to an unbeaten start to their year also after downing NAIA foe St Ambrose University 7-2.

Kohawk TENNIS--Fall Preview

Classes begin Monday, August 30th, and the Women's Tennis team is just wrapping up their week of pre-season training. We have been getting in two very good workouts each day this week, and the talent on the team is quite evident.

The Iowa Conference looks to be very strong this Fall with four of the top five teams returning 5 of 6 starters. Coe only returns one player, Hannah Jensen, with more than one year of collegiate tennis experience. With the help of new Assistant Coaches, Kris Diehl & Rob Rye, the Ladies are determined to overcome their experience shortage and challenge Luther, Wartburg, Cornell & Central for the Conference Championship. Although the singles order is not yet set, it will be comprised of seniors Hannah Jensen(IC West) & Natalie Bordignon(CR Xavier), sophomores Michelle Schupbach(Waterloo Columbus) & Sara Ohlman(Washington, IL), and first-years Tai Lucero(Odessa, TX Permian) and Elizabeth Hoffmann(CR Xavier). The Lady Kohawks open play up with a Conference double dual on September 4th against Central College and Simpson College. Both matches on the road. A challenging beginning!

The Kohawk Men's Tennis squad will begin their four week Fall season on Labor Day. Although senior Captain, Elliot Rausa(Waterloo Columbus), will be kicking field goals for the nationally ranked football team, there are plenty of talented Kohawks on the courts this Fall. Senior Captain, Scott Stegemann(Davenport Central), after a fine summer of tournament play, leads the returnees. Joining the roster this year will be a record shattering 11 first-years! The Men will compete in an expanded Fall schedule which includes a D1 tournament in Peoria, the Iowa Conference Individual Championships in Cedar Rapids, and the ITA Regional in St Peter, MN. Look for an excellent season from the Men as court time and starting positions will be at a premium!

Greg Janssen named Bates College Assistant Tennis Coach

Greg Janssen, a 2010 Coe College graduate, has been named the Men's & Women's Assistant Tennis Coach at Bates College. Bates is located in Lewiston, Maine and is ranked as the #25 most prestigious liberal arts college in the United States. Greg will working for Paul Gastonguay, their highly respected Head Tennis Coach. Coach Gastonguay, a Bates graduate, has coached National Champions in both Men's Singles and in Men's Doubles in the past five years.

Greg was a four year letterwinner for the Kohawks, Team Captain, and concluded his career as the Iowa Conference Most Valuable Player, finishing first in Individual Singles, and runner-up in Individual Doubles in 2010. Greg also was Academic All-Conference.

Tournament update II

Last weekend was the Iowa Open, Cedar Rapids' big summer USTA tennis event. Many players with Kohawk connections had good results.

Senior Captains Elliot Rausa and Scott Stegemann advanced to the quarters of the prize money singles and teamed up to reach the doubles final losing 11-9 in the Match Tiebreaker to Coe alum Phil Williams and his partner. Sophomores Sara Ohlman and Curtis Newman reached the Mixed semis as did grad Molly Fiala. Molly was in the singles semis as well.

Coach Kris Diehl almost pulled off the elusive Triple Crown winning the Singles and Mixed events easily, only to fall 12-10 in the Super in Women's doubles teamed with Molly Fiala. Somehow, in spite of himself, Coach Rodgers won the Men's 35's.

BTW-this tournament report is brought to you from the Little Missouri River in Theodore Roosevelt NP, Medora, North Dakota.

Only 20 days until Women's practice begins!
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