ATHLETICS - M Tennis

Men's Tennis' Mokrzycki Earns Academic All-District Honor

Fri, 17 May 2013 15:32:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry senior men's tennis player Marco Mokrzycki was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America Academic At-Large All-District Team.

Mokrzycki, a senior from Hannover, Germany, had a 3.41 grade point average in finance. He graduated from Barry two weeks ago, prior to helping the No. 1 Buccaneers win the NCAA Division II National Championship last week.

A Third-Team Academic All-America and all-district selection in 2012, Mokrzycki went 12-3 with an 8-3 record against nationally-ranked opponents in singles this year, and earned a No. 4 nation-wide ranking. He was 23-3 in doubles, which included a 21-3 mark with partner Fabian Groetsch at the No. 1 flight. Mokrzycki was 7-2 when competing against nationally-ranked pairs opponents, and he and Groetsch beat the No. 1 doubles team in the nation twice this year.

Mokrzycki broke the school's all-time doubles victories record, collecting his record-setting 79th win in the NCAA Championship match when he and Groetsch beat No. 1 Georgi Rumenov and Daniel Regan, 9-8 (7-1) to help the Buccaneers win it all.

NCAA Division II
Tennis	Marco Mokrzycki	BARRY UNIVERSITY	Sr.	Hannover, Germany	3.41	Finance
Swimming	Robbie Swan	FLORIDA SOUTHERN COLLEGE	Jr.	Snellville, GA	4.00	Business
Tennis	Shane Latchman	BENEDICT COLLEGE	So.	St. Vincent, Grenadines	3.93	Computer Engineering
Tennis	Elio Latela	WEST FLORIDA, UNIVERSITY OF	So.	Sydney, Australia	3.58	Economics
Swimming	Elias Dammann	TAMPA, UNIVERSITY OF	Jr.	Nesoddtangen, Norway	3.94	Economics
Swimming	Michael Zislin	NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY	So.	Lighthouse Point, Fla.	3.90	Finance
Tennis	Zibusiso Ndimande	BENEDICT COLLEGE	So.	Mutare, Zimbawe	3.77	Computer Egineering
Tennis	Benoit Paradis	FLORIDA SOUTHERN COLLEGE	Jr.	Quebec City, Quebec	3.50	Mathematics
Lacrosse	Eric Dance	TAMPA, UNIVERSITY OF	Sr.	Tampa, Fla.	3.67	Exercise Science
Golf	Gary Buffington III	WEST FLORIDA, UNIVERSITY OF	So.	Tampa, Fla.	4.00	Accounting
Lacrosse	Matthew Obermeyer	SAINT LEO UNIVERSITY	Jr.	Winter Springs, Fla.	3.64	Marketing

Campeones on CBS: NCAA Champion Men's Tennis on TV

Mon, 13 May 2013 19:47:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University's NCAA Champion men's tennis team was honored in a welcome back celebration ceremony Monday morning in the Landon Atrium at Health & Sports Center.

School president Sister Linda Bevilacqua and Barry athletic director Mike Covone spoke on behalf of the team, while coach George Samuel and point-clinching hero Leo Vivas also offered a few words as part of the ceremony. A highlight video of Vivas' final game to clinch the title was also shown. It can be seen by clicking HERE or visiting the Barry Multimedia Tab on the upper right side of the www.gobarrybucs.com home page, and clicking on the YouTube link.

The Bucs were also fitted for their championship rings, which they will receive in the fall when another ceremony is planned.

CBS4 (Channel 4) was on hand to air a piece, honoring the champion Buccaneers. Check out the Miami television station's website http://miami.cbslocal.com/category/sports/ and follow CBS4 Sports on Twitter at https://twitter.com/CBS4Sports. Watch Jim Berry's report by clicking HERE.

No. 1 Barry beat No. 2 Armstrong Atlantic, 5-4, in a dramatic finish to win it all.

The Buccaneers went 29-0, collecting the first unbeaten season in school history for any sport to capture the men's tennis program's second national title. It was Barry University athletic program's 10th NCAA Championship in all sports, and marked the Sunshine State Conference's 80th national title in league history. The 80 SSC titles are the most in NCAA Division II.

Barry to Honor National Champion Men's Tennis Monday

Sun, 12 May 2013 17:25:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Barry University will hold a celebration ceremony Monday at 11 a.m. in the Health & Sports Center Landon atrium to honor the 2013 NCAA Champion Buccaneer men’s tennis team.

The Bucs went 29-0, capturing the program’s second national title and the school’s 10^th overall. No. 1 Barry defeated No. 2 Armstrong Atlantic, 5-4, in dramatic fashion Saturday at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex in Surprise, Ariz., to don the champions crown.

The Buccaneers went unbeaten for the first time in the school's entire athletic history.

NCAA Champs: Men's Tennis Nets National Title

Sat, 11 May 2013 22:50:00 GMT

NCAA Championship Match Full Replay

Coach George Samuel Intertview

Leo Vivas "El Presidente" & Romain Costamagna Interview

SURPRISE, Ariz. – El Presidente laid down the law once again, and Barry University men’s tennis team became a national champion Saturday.

“Honestly, I can’t believe what just happened,” said Leo Vivas, otherwise known as, “El Presidente,” after becoming the hero in a title match that shifted from excitement-on-the-brink to gloom-and-doom to outright euphoria.

In a match that was as dramatic as they come, No. 1 Barry outlasted No. 2 Armstrong Atlantic in a 5-4 thriller to secure the program’s second NCAA Division II National Championship. It marked the university athletic program’s 10^th national title in school history.

The Buccaneers (29-0) ran the table, becoming the first men’s tennis team to go unbeaten in school history. The Bucs are also the first team in any sport at Barry University to ever have an unblemished record.

“This is a Cinderella story as I thought of it in the beginning, and I was hoping it would come to an end this way. And it actually has,” longtime Bucs coach George Samuel said. “By far, this is the best year that I’ve ever had in my 23 years as far as the success went throughout the year.”

It didn’t come without its lion’s share of drama on the largest stage.

Barry’s Romain Costamagna and Vivas shredded Jaan Kononov and Matus Mydla, 8-1, at No. 3 doubles for the match’s first point. But the other two doubles matches were laced with razor-sharp intensity and wire-to-wire intrigue.

Despite trailing, 5-4, at the top doubles flight, No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch beat No. 1-ranked Daniel Regan and Georgi Rumenov, 9-8 (7-1), in a back-and-forth match filled with its share of nerve-testing points. Tied 6-6 with Groetsch serving, the Bucs warded off five break points and held serve in a game that lasted roughly 10 minutes to take a 7-6 lead. Then with Regan serving and the Bucs sitting on match point, Rumenov’s play at the net tied the match at 7-7.

Mokrzycki held serve to bump the Buccaneers up, 8-7. But Rumenov responded again with his serve to send the No. 1 pairs match into a tiebreaker. That’s where the Bucs ran away with it, winning seven of the next eight points to put Barry ahead, 2-0.

Mokrzycki's doubles triumph broke assistant coach Thomas Hipp's seven-year school record for most pairs victories. Mokrzycki now is alone at the top with 79 doubles wins in his four-year Buccaneer career.

At No. 2 doubles, it was more of the same. Trailing 7-6, Barry’s No. 19-ranked Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre responded with their backs to the wall against No. 5-ranked Sven Lalic and Pedro Scocuglia to win 9-8 (7-5). Down 6-3 in the tie breaker, the Bucs fought off three straight match points to tie it at 6-6 in the final game. After Lalic and Scocuglia nabbed the next point to move ahead, 7-6, for its fourth match point, Lemaitre and Wimmer won the next three points to secure the match and sweep the doubles.

Ahead 3-0 after doubles, Barry was in position to run away with this title against the nation’s toughest opponent on the other side of the net. But that’s when it got interesting, and the momentum changed in a hurry.

Eleventh-ranked Regan beat 23^rd-ranked Groetsch, who battled the flu for the past four days, 6-1, 6-3, at No. 3 singles, cutting the Bucs lead to 3-1. Meanwhile, Barry had dropped a set in four other singles matches.

Seeking his first postseason victory and the first in a month and five days, Costamagna was money in a 6-4, 6-3 win over the 16^th-ranked Lalic at No. 4 singles. But even that point didn’t come without a little adversity.

Costamagna led 3-0 in the first set before dropping the next three games to tie it at 3-3. But the outspoken junior Frenchmen lifted his game to another level to close out the first set by winning three of the last four. Costamagna led 3-2 in the second set before breaking Lalic’s serve to take a two-game cushion. After each held serve the next games, Costamagna served for the match, securing the Bucs’ fourth point.

“I told everyone, I want to finish in the finals,” said Costamagna, who endured seven straight unfinished matches before delivering a clutch victory when the Bucs needed it most. “I play to win. It’s unbelievable. Since we arrived in August, we wanted to win the national championship. It was a good day to play a good match.”

Leading 4-1, needing one more match to secure the title, Armstrong (27-2) turned up its tennis again. Pablo Gor defeated Lemaitre, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 6 singles, bringing the Pirates within two. Yet the Bucs had three more matches to secure one point.

Easier said than done.

Leading 3-0 in the first set at No. 1 singles, No. 4-ranked Mokrzycki had break point opportunities with a chance to take a 4-0 lead on No. 5-ranked Mydla, but the Pirates top player answered the challenge by winning the game. Up 5-2 with a chance to close out the first set, Mokrzycki was within two points of breaking Mydla, but the Bucs German senior couldn’t convert. Trailing 5-3, Mydla broke Mokrzycki before winning the ensuing game to tie the set at 5-5. Mokrzycki served his way back to a 6-5 lead, but Mydla held serve again to send it to a tiebreaker. Mokrzycki confessed he “played poorly” in the tiebreaker, falling 7-2, before eventually dropping the second set, 6-1. That pulled the Pirates within a point of the Buccaneers, 4-3.

At No. 2 singles, the 26^th-ranked Wimmer led No. 1-ranked Rumenov, 5-3, and had worked his way to set point, but squandered the opportunity and eventually dropped the set. Rumenov went on to win, 7-6 (8-6), 6-2, to tie the match at 4-4.

It all came down to No. 5 singles, where Vivas dropped the first set to 29^th-ranked Scocuglia, 6-3, before winning the second in comeback fashion, 6-4. Trailing 4-1 in the decisive set, as he did in the second, Vivas found his back against the wall, knowing the title rested on his shoulders.

“I was 4-1 down in the third, and things were looking bad,” Vivas said. “I was looking through a tunnel. It was all dark.”

But El Presidente battled, winning the next three games to tie it at 4-4.

“What we’ve seen is the support system that kicked in at that time off of just that one court that was in play,” Samuel said. “I mean, we had all of our coaches out there, every one of them out there, rooting and pushing and encouraging. The team was lined up there at the fence, and there wasn’t the slightest drop of momentum for the support there. It just felt good. It felt like it could happen.”

Scocuglia served his way to a 5-4 lead before Vivas matched it with a service win to tie it at 5-5. Vivas broke Scocuglia to take a 6-5 lead, and then served for the match without dropping a point to clinch the national title for the Buccaneers.

“I saw my team there, I saw everyone there,” Vivas said. “It was just like, ‘This is your last match. Just give it everything you have.’ Everything worked out well. I honestly didn’t even think about the score. I just played tennis.”

Now the Buccaneers have glossy hardware and can call themselves champions.

“It was a goal,” Costamagna said. “Now we did it. It’s a big step in history for Barry University.”

BOX SCORE

Chasing a Championship: Men's Tennis Advances to Title Match

Fri, 10 May 2013 19:10:00 GMT

MARCO MOKRZYCKI INTERVIEW

LEO VIVAS & ROMAIN COSTAMAGNA INTERVIEW

SURPRISE, Ariz. – Barry University men’s tennis team has carried a big racquet all season long. Now the Buccaneers will try to brandish their flashy net appeal in the NCAA Division II National Championship match after sweeping No. 6 Concordia (N.Y.), 5-0, in Friday’s semifinals.

No. 1 Barry (28-0) will meet No. 2 Armstrong Atlantic (27-1) in Saturday’s 12 p.m. EST national title match at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex. The Bucs beat the Pirates, 5-4, earlier this season in Miami Shores. Armstrong is the defending NCAA champs.

Saturday's championship match can be watched live at www.ncaa.com by clicking HERE or followed via LIVE STATS.

“It feels great,” junior Leo Vivas said. “The win, and now knowing we are going to the finals, it’s great.”

Vivas delivered the clinching point Friday with his 6-3, 6-4 No. 5 singles victory over Benas Majauskas.

“It’s teamwork,” Vivas said. “If we need five points, I just gave two of them. The rest, the team gave ’em. I gave 110 percent when I went to the court, wanting to just get it over and done with. Because of the sun, the heat, I just wanted to finish as quick as we could so we can rest for tomorrow.”

Vivas and fellow junior Romain Costamagna spotted the Bucs a 2-0 lead over the Clippers (22-3) by winning their No. 3 doubles match over David Tisserand and Andreas Lindell, 8-5.

“We want to make our point count,” Vivas said. “Every time we get on the court, we give 110 percent.”

Outsiders have said Costamagna and Vivas deserve a national doubles ranking, what with their passion and energy, not to mention talent, they bring to the court match after match. Ranking or not, the Bucs No. 3 duo is never short on infusing energy into this team.

“It’s always important, first for me, because I like to be pumped on the court, and for the team also,” Costamagna said. “Today we played really good, and we are looking forward to tomorrow.”

Nineteenth-ranked Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre defeated 20^th-ranked Majauskas and Tomasz Olfans, 8-5, at No. 2 doubles for Barry’s first point. No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch weathered through an 8-6 victory over No. 6 Andrey Boldarev and Daniele Piludu at the top flight.

Mokrzycki’s doubles victory gave him 78 in his four-year Buccaneer career, matching him with assistant coach and former All-American Thomas Hipp for the most in school history.

“I’m extremely glad that we won our three doubles today, and that I could actually win and tie Thomas’ record, but it’s not the most important thing,” Mokrzycki said. “Thomas was an unbelievable tennis player. He made history for Barry University. Being able to tie his record means I have also done a lot of good things at Barry. I’m glad that I could contribute to a lot of wins, and hopefully I’ll be able to break his record tomorrow with another win.”

Lemaitre put the Buccaneers ahead 4-0 with his third NCAA Tournament singles victory this postseason in a dynamite 6-0, 6-1 win over Lindell at No. 6 singles. Then it became a race to determine whose singles point would clinch it for the Bucs.

The fourth-ranked Mokrzycki led 10^th-ranked Boldarev, 6-2, 4-1, at No. 1 singles in an unfinished match. In search of his first postseason singles victory of the year, Costamagna led Tisserand, 6-4, 5-4, at the No. 4 spot in another match that went unfinished. But Vivas, otherwise known as “El Presidente,” played the closer’s role to push Barry into the championship match.

“Now we are here,” Costamagna said. “We just have to come out strong from the beginning in doubles.”

Energy and intensity, included.

“All the work we’ve done this year has paid off,” Vivas said. “We have one more day in the season just to give it everything we have.”

BOX SCORE

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

SATURDAY'S CHAMPIONSHIP LIVE STATS

Men's Tennis Bounce Sea Warriors in NCAA Quarterfinals

Fri, 10 May 2013 03:05:00 GMT

LEO VIVAS & OLLIE LEMAITRE INTERVIEW

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- SURPRISE, Ariz. – Barry University men’s tennis lived to see another day. The No. 1-ranked Buccaneers outlasted No. 5 Hawai’i Pacific, 5-1, Thursday in the NCAA quarterfinals at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex.

Barry (27-0) advances to Friday’s noon semifinals against No. 6 Concordia (22-2). The match can be followed via LIVE STATS.

“This is a new experience for me – the first time at nationals,” Barry junior Venezuelan Leo Vivas said after delivering two key victories in Thursday’s win over the Sea Warriors. “Every point I win, every match, every game … it feels so good to give something back to the team. I think we have a great chance of doing great in this tournament.”

Vivas did a few things great in knocking the Sea Warriors (19-4) out. First, he and Romain Costamagna battled through an 8-6 No. 3 doubles victory over Max Hertl and Jaume Martinez-Vich to complete the Bucs’ pairs sweep. Vivas’ charging drop shot winner with both he and Costamagna at the net helped take the air out of HPU in a closely-contested match.

That put the Bucs ahead 3-0 entering singles play.

Vivas’ energy carried over in singles as he blistered past Yann Renault, 6-0, in the opening set before winning the second, 6-4, to secure Barry’s fourth point at the No. 4 flight.

“Everyone wants it,” Vivas said. “Everyone wants to be here. Everyone wants a ring.”

Barry’s No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch battled back from an early hole to defeat No. 7 Petr Michnev and Gerald Moretti, 8-6, at No. 1 doubles. Nineteenth-ranked Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre were impressive, playing with marked intensity compared to a day earlier, in an 8-4 No. 2 pairs win over Maxime Halflants and Renault.

After No. 26 Wimmer fell to 15^th-ranked Martinez-Vich, 6-2, 6-4, at No. 2 singles, Hawai’i Pacific drew within, 4-1. Wimmer remains tied with assistant coach Thomas Hipp with 67 career singles victories among Barry’s all-time leaders. Mokrzycki is one doubles victory shy of matching Hipp’s school record of 78 career pairs wins.

Leading by a game throughout most of the first set at No. 5 singles against Halflants, Lemaitre soon found himself down 6-5 and trailing 30-Love -- two points away from dropping the opening set. After hearing chatter from the other side, Lemaitre forced a first-set tiebreaker by winning four straight points and the ensuing game to draw even at 6-all. After winning the tiebreaker, 7-3, Lemaitre ran the table in the second set, 6-0, to seal the match for the Buccaneers.

“I started really fired up, but my opponent was as fired up as me, which made it really tough in the first set,” Lemaitre confessed. “I stepped up my game, and won the first set in the tiebreaker. In the second set, I really stepped it up again. I played with more margin, and made the guy run a little bit more.“

Now the Buccaneers will try to continue their run with Friday’s semifinal match against the New York school.

“Tomorrow’s another match,” Lemaitre said. “It’s probably going to be a tough opening again. But we’ve got to take matches by matches and hope for the best, and hope everybody comes out as pumped as today and do a great job.”

BOX SCORE

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

Men's Tennis Ousts Northwood

Wed, 08 May 2013 13:41:00 GMT

KEVIN SIELMANN INTERVIEW

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Barry University men's tennis team blanked Northwood, 5-0, in the Round of 16 at the NCAA Division II Championships at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex Wednesday morning.

The No. 1 Buccaneers (26-0) advance to Thursday's 12 p.m. EST quarterfinals against No. 5 Hawai'i Pacific (20-3).

"We came out really strong in doubles," sophomore Kevin Sielmann said after clinching the victory for the Bucs with a straight-sets singles win. "Our opponents were a little bit down, so it was a little easier to beat them."

Sielmann defeated Konstantin Zhukov, 6-1, 6-2, at No. 6 singles for the deciding point to eliminate No. 32 Northwood (17-5). It marked Barry's second win over the Timberwolves this year, having beaten them in the regular season in Miami Shores.

"I was feeling really good," Sielmann said. "We woke up really early, but it didn't really affect us. I started really strong with my forehand and service. It was a smooth match. I feel really good being able to support my team with a point."

The Bucs led 3-0 after doubles play, despite a closely-contested No. 2 pairs match. Nineteenth-ranked Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre overcame an early deficit during a sluggish match to beat Lorenzo Montegiorgi and Marcus Oliveira, 9-7, at the No. 2 spot. That completed the doubles sweep.

Barry's No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch were 8-4 winners over Florian Boggia and Jean Menard at the No. 1 flight. Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas cruised to an 8-2 win over Samual Walendowsky and Zhukov at No. 3 in the Buccaneers' first victory of the match.

Renato Lombardi delivered Barry's first singles victory, beating Victor Kasak, 6-0, 6-1, at No. 5. It was Lombardi's first collegiate postseason victory.

"Obviously, it feels really good to win today, but we are looking forward," Sielmann said. "Tomorrow we have an important match. We are only thinking about tomorrow."

BOX SCORE

THURSDAY'S LIVE STATS

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

Samuel Named Men's Tennis National Coach of the Year

Wed, 08 May 2013 01:23:00 GMT

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Barry University's George Samuel was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Men's Tennis National Coach of the Year Tuesday.

It is the second time in Samuel's 22-year coaching career he's received the honor. He also won the award in 1999.

"It's a good feeling of personal satisfaction that I was always hoping to achieve again," Samuel said. "There's a lot of good coaches out there. It's been quite a few years since I won the award the last time. So receiving this now, it's a good feather in my cap, so to speak."

Samuel won the 2010 National Championship. He's coached five teams to national runner-up finishes. This year, he also won South Region and Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year honors. He's won the league coaching honor 13 times in his storied career.

Earlier this season, Samuel collected his 400th career victory as men's coach. He's guided the Buccaneers to their first undefeated regular season in school history and a No. 1 national ranking. Barry is 25-0 entering Wednesday's Round of 16 match against Northwood in the NCAA Championships.

"It was nice to be congratulated by all the other coaches at the national banquet," Samuel said. "This award is special because it's a national award, and it's great to be recognized by your peers on a national level."

Samuel, who's built the Buccaneers into a national power, has arguably the deepest team in the Barry program's history. He's also been the beneficiary of a talented assistant coaching staff, including Thomas Hipp, Kern Pedersen, Frederic Bonal and Francisco Sigaud.

"It's also a large part of my assistant coaches that this honor comes to be," Samuel said. "If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be as successful as I am."

Big Returns: Men's Tennis Ready for Nationals

Tue, 07 May 2013 18:42:00 GMT

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Barry University's No. 1-ranked men's tennis team begins play at the NCAA Division II National Championships in Wednesday's 10 a.m. EST match against No. 32 Northwood at Suprise Tennis & Racquet Center.

"This is what everybody's been working for since the fall," senior Max Wimmer said. "Now everybody's ready to compete, and do their best."

The Buccaneers (25-0) will meet Northwood (17-4) for the second time this year. Barry beat the Timberwolves, 8-1, in Miami Shores on March 15. But this is the grand stage, and with 16 teams in the country left, it's a new ball game.

"We're starting from scratch," Wimmer said.

"The season starts over," junior Leo Vivas said. "It doesn't matter what we've done during the season. We want to finish first at the end of the season."

The Bucs, who won the NCAA title in 2010, are making their 17th trip to the site of the finals.

"This is huge," Vivas said. "This is what we worked for the whole year. Of course, we're taking it seriously. All the work we've done, we can't just throw that away. But one of the things we did to get here is have fun."

Wimmer is one singles victory away from becoming the school's all-time career wins leader. He is tied with current assistant coach Thomas Hipp with 67 victories in Buccaneer Red and Black. Senior Marco Mokrzycki is three doubles wins shy of tying Hipp's career mark of 78.

"I honestly would prefer to win as a team, but it would be nice to get the record in this tournament," Wimmer said. "I really don't care, though. I want to win a title with my team. That's the most important thing."

Barry has put together a season to remember, going unbeaten during the regular season for the first time in school history and climbing to No. 1 in the national poll. Yet there is unfinished business left.

"Hard work has paid off so far," Vivas said. "All the sacrifices, everything we've done so far has been a result of our hard work. With the chemistry on this team, we can do anything. It doesn't matter if you win individually. You have to win as a team."

LIVE STATS

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

Samuel Named South Region Men's Tennis Coach of Year

Sat, 04 May 2013 17:21:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University's George Samuel was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association South Region Men's Tennis Coach of the Year.

"It's a great privilege and honor to be recognized by my peer coaches for the efforts made that have had such a successful impact on the success of the tennis season," Samuel said. "However, it certainly would not have been possible to receive such an award without the help of my assistant coaches who have worked equally hard for the success we have had."

Samuel won the ITA National Coach of the Year award in 1999. Earlier this year, Samuel picked up his 400th career victory with the Bucs men's program.

His No. 1-ranked Buccaneers (25-0) play No. 32 Northwood (17-4) at 10 a.m. EST Wednesday in the NCAA Division II Championships Round of 16 in Surprise, Ariz.

Barry completed its first unbeaten regular season in school history this year.

The ITA National Coach of the Year and other awards will be announced Tuesday at a banquet in Surprise.

ITA AWARDS

Tennis on TV: Watch CBS4 Jim Berry's Report

Sat, 04 May 2013 11:32:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University's No. 1-ranked men's and women's tennis teams were featured Friday on CBS4 Miami in Jim Berry's special report during the 5 p.m. newscast.

Watch it here: http://miami.cbslocal.com/2013/05/03/barry-university-chasing-after-a-pair-of-national-tennis-championships/.

The Bucs men's team (25-0) meets No. 32 Northwood, Mich. (17-4) at 10 a.m. EST Wednesday in the NCAA Division II National Championships Round of 16 in Surprise, Ariz.

The Buccaneers women's team (26-0) plays No. 19 Midwestern State (17-6) at 4 p.m. EST Wednesday in the Round of 16.

MEN'S NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

WOMEN'S NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

Double Trouble: Barry Tennis No. 1 in Nation

Thu, 02 May 2013 17:31:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's and women's tennis teams share a common bond. Both are ranked No. 1 in the nation.

The Buccaneers women's team earned the top billing when the Intercollegiate Tennis Association national poll was released Wednesday. Barry's men's team became No. 1 Thursday when the ITA rankings went public. It is the first time in school history Barry men's and women's programs have been ranked No. 1 simultaneously.

"I think it's a very proud time for Barry University to have both its men and women at the top of the charts," Bucs men's coach George Samuel said. "It's a pat on the back for all the hard work they've done. I think they deserve that honor."

Barry's men (25-0) play No. 32 Northwood, Mich. (17-4) at 10 a.m. EST Wednesday in the Round of 16 at the NCAA Division II National Championships in Surprise, Ariz.

The Buccaneers women (26-0) meet No. 19 Midwestern State (17-6) at 4 p.m. EST Wednesday in the Round of 16 at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex.

This marks the first time Barry's women's team has been ranked No. 1 prior to the NCAA Championships in school history.

"We're very excited to be ranked No. 1," Bucs women's coach Avi Kigel said. "It's another stepping stone for us. It shows that we've been doing the right things. It shows that we've been playing the right schedule.

"The girls had to go through a little bit of adversity with only seven players. They were able to find ways to win. This is not the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is to be No. 1 at the end of nationals."

The Buccaneer men's team concurs.

"It's more incentive to try to hold on to that ranking throughout the national tournament," Samuel said. "We're looking forward to next week."

WOMEN'S RANKINGS

MEN'S RANKINGS

Airborn to Arizona: Men's Tennis Wins NCAA South Regional

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:42:00 GMT

LEO VIVAS INTERVIEW

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Leo Vivas was starting to hear the words ring out. "El Presidente ... El Presidente," belted out his small chorus of inner followers.

Then within seconds, Vivas sealed the deal with an ace in his 6-3, 6-4 No. 5 singles victory over Ismail Lemtouni to send Barry University men's tennis team on to the NCAA Division II Championships, following Monday's 5-0 South Region 1 Championship win over No. 15 Saint Leo at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

El Presidente and the Buccaneers laid down the law.

"I don't know," Vivas said, sporting a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon the Buccaneers will be competing for a national title just four hours south of next week. "It's just a nickname they gave me."

Vivas and the No. 2-ranked Buccaneers (25-0) earned their stripes after clinching their 17th trip to the NCAA Finals, where they will meet No. 32 Northwood, Mich. (17-4) at 10 a.m. EST/7 a.m. Arizona Wednesday, May 8 in the Round of 16 at Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex.

"The team performed very well today. Everyone came out just pumped up for nationals," Vivas said. "We've been preparing for this for so long. Everyone's ready, everyone is playing great. I can feel everyone wants to win."

Barry (25-0) swept the doubles to put the Bucs ahead 3-0 entering singles, needing two points to begin booking airfare to Arizona. No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch were dominant in efficiently putting away Aloua Adjenak and Jake Fleischer at the top pairs flight.

Romain Costamagna and Vivas defeated Bruno Sisti and Lemtouni, 8-3, at No. 3 doubles. Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre were 8-5 winners over Matt Nicholson-Lewis and Victor Lozier in a match the Bucs had to recover from an early deficit.

"With this particular match today, it's the kind of match that signals everything you work for," Bucs head coach George Samuel said. "Everything rode on this match. If you don't come out and try your best, you can throw everything away."

Groetsch, the 19th-ranked singles player in the country, meant business in defeating Lozier, 6-1, 6-0, at No. 3 singles. That moved Barry within a point of wrapping up the region title.

Wimmer, the 22nd-ranked singles player, labored through a first set against Sisti at No. 2, despite having his serve clocked at 134 miles per hour. Wimmer, who is a win away becoming the school's career leader in singles victories, overcame a 5-4 first-set defict to win 7-6 (5).

Lemaitre won his first set 6-2 over Jacobo Gonzalez at No. 6. Costamagna won his opening set, 6-2, over the 28th-ranked Nicholson-Lewis. But, like Wimmer, both were too far back in the second set to clinch the necessary fifth point.

It became a race between Vivas and the fourth-ranked Mokrzycki to decide it. Mokrzycki had the 18th-ranked Adjenak under control throughout the No. 1 singles match, winning the first set, 6-2. Barry's senior German-born Male Athlete of the Year led the Lions' top player 5-4 in the second set, but Vivas sent a forehand winner down the line and then ripped off the ace to clinch it.

"My match, I started pretty lethargic, but at the end I started playing my match as I wanted," Vivas said.

Now the Buccaneers have the trip planned they've been wanting all year long.

"We are very excited to go to Arizona," Barry assistant coach Thomas Hipp said. "We are just taking it one match at a time. Now the players can focus on academics for the rest of the week before nationals, where we can really enjoy being at the biggest stage."

What a stage it's been for this Buccaneer team -- the only one in school history to go through the regular season with an unblemished record.

"I think this win is going to be very helpful to this team. They're playing with a lot of confidence," Samuel said. "I'm just so pleased with this season. It's been incredible."

BOX SCORE

SOUTH REGION 1 CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET

Saint Leo Men's Tennis Survives Rollins in Semifinal Battle

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 21:33:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – In an intense, back-and-forth battle decided in the third three-set singles match, fifth-seeded Saint Leo rallied from a 4-2 deficit to beat fourth-seeded Rollins, 5-4, in the South Region semifinals at Barry University’s Buccaneer Tennis Center Sunday night.

After Rollins Malte Christesen won the final two sets in a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 No. 2 singles victory over Bruno Sisti to move the Tars (13-11) within a point of clinching, the Lions (16-5) responded with unbelievable fortitude.

Saint Leo’s 28^th-ranked Matt Nicholson-Lewis won his No. 4 singles match over Sebastian Hafner, 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 to pull the Lions within one. After dropping the first set, 18^th-ranked Aloua Adjenak came back to beat 29^th-ranked Will Kwok, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, at the No. 1 flight to tie the match at 4-all.

Then with all eyes turned to the final singles match on Court 6, Saint Leo’s Jacobo Gonzalez rallied from a third-set deficit to defeat Jacobo Herrero, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, at No. 6 singles. Gonzalez trailed 4-3 in the third set, but survived a ton of long rallies and extended games to send the Lions on to the region finals.

Ranked No. 15 in NCAA Division II, Saint Leo will play No. 2 Barry (24-0) at 10 a.m. Monday for the South Region 1 Championship.

Rollins, which was ranked sixth in the country entering the match, won the top two doubles flights. Seventeenth-ranked Kwok and Jason Alabaster cruised to an 8-1 triumph over Adjenak and Jake Fleischer at No. 1 doubles. Christesen and Robin Marchione defeated Saint Leo’s Nicholson-Lewis and Victor Lozier, 8-5, at No. 2 pairs to put the Tars ahead 2-1.

Sisti and Ismail Lemtouni picked up the Lions doubles point with an 8-6 win over Adrian Di Felice and Cooper Maxwell at the third doubles spot.

Marchione, the 34^th-ranked singles player in the nation, defeated Lozier, 6-4, 6-3, at No. 3 singles. That gave Rollins a 3-2 lead. Lemtouni’s 7-5, 6-2 win over Di Felice tied the match at 2-2.

SOUTH REGION CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL

Barry Men's Tennis Rolls into Region Finals

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 19:40:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis team advanced to Monday's 10 a.m. South Region championship, following its 5-0 win over Alabama-Huntsville Sunday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

The No. 2-ranked Buccaneers (24-0) will meet No. 15 Saint Leo (16-5) to decide the region championship. It will mark Barry's 13th straight region finals appearance.

"I think this has been the deepest team ever, and that keeps our competitiveness high," Barry assistant coach Thomas Hipp said. "We still have good team chemistry even though we have a lot of competition within the team. The competition keeps everybody on their toes. We have more than six good players. That's what keeps everybody extremely motivated in practice."

Barry's No. 1 doubles team of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch, who carry a No. 2 national ranking, had to walk a fine line in their 9-7 win over Jose Soto and Nestor Perez. Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre beat Fredrik Graaner and Guilhermo Reyes, 8-4, at the second flight. Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas were dominant 8-1 victors over Chris Kano and Raphael Oliveria at No. 3 pairs.

"They have a tendency to just feel out their opponent, and then they play," Hipp said of his No. 1 doubles unit. "It was kind of a wake-up call. On the other hand, our No. 3 doubles came out full of energy."

Lemaitre, who has won three straight postseason matches, was a 6-2, 6-2 winner over Perez at No. 4 singles. Kevin Sielmann, playing in his first postseason match this season, beat Oliveria, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 6 to seal it for the Buccaneers.

Sielmann collected his first NCAA Tournament singles victory in the two years he's been at Barry.

"I think Kevin did a good job," Hipp said. "It will help him with the experience in the postseason, and will give him more confidence. We may need him later on."

BOX SCORE

SOUTH REGION CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL

Alabama-Huntsville Takes Down Stillman Men's Tennis

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 20:57:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Ninth-seeded Alabama-Huntsville beat eighth-seeded Stillman, 5-1, in the first round of the NCAA Division II South Region 1 men’s tennis tournament hosted by Barry University at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

The Chargers (15-13) advance to meet the top-seeded host Buccaneers (23-0) at 11:30 a.m. in Sunday’s semifinals.

Huntsville’s Nestor Perez beat David Torres, 6-1, 6-1, at No. 1 singles. Chris Kano defeated Vladyslav Zhyrov, 6-1, 6-2, at No. 3. Ghuilermo Reyes swept Santiago Robles, 6-0, 6-0, at No. 5, clinching the victory for the Chargers.

After Huntsville won the Nos. 1 and 3 doubles matches to go up 2-0 in the match, Stillman’s gritty No. 2 duo of Aleksandar Zobec and Luis Mendoza played an inspired match in beating Fredrik Graaneer and Reyes, 8-4, to pull the Tigers within 2-1 entering singles play.

But the Chargers played vocal, determined tennis in singles action to advance to Sunday’s semifinals against the only unbeaten men’s team left in the Division II national tournament when they meet the host Buccaneers.

Mokrzycki Named SSC Men's Tennis Player of Year

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 16:48:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry University's Marco Mokrzycki was named Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year, and six Buccaneers earned all-league honors.

Mokrzycki joined Fabian Groetsch and Max Wimmer on the First Team in singles. Mokrzycki and Groetsch were also selected as a First-Team doubles combination.

Barry's George Samuel was named SSC Coach of the Year after guiding his team to a second straight conference title and 23-0 record entering Sunday's NCAA Division II South Regional at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

Wimmer and Leo Vivas were selected to the All-SSC Second Team as a doubles unit. Romain Costamagna earned Second-Team honors in singles.

Vivas earned All-SSC honorable mention acclaim in singles.

2013 ALL-SUNSHINE STATE CONFERENCE MEN'S TENNIS TEAM

First Team
Singles
Aloua Adjenak, Saint Leo (Jr)
Vlad Cirla, Lynn (Jr)
Nicolas Clerc, Florida Tech (Jr)
Fabian Groetsch, Barry (So)
Marco Mokrzycki, Barry (Sr)
Benoit Paradis, Florida Southern (Jr)
Max Wimmer, Barry (Sr)

Doubles
Nicolas Clerc/Patrick Hernandez, Florida Tech (Jr/Fr)
Marco Mokrzycki/Fabian Groetsch, Barry (Sr/So)
Willi Wolfer/Vlad Cirla, Lynn (Sr/Jr)

Player of the Year - Marco Mokrzycki, Barry
Freshman of the Year - Robin Marchione, Rollins
Coach of the Year - George Samuel, Barry

Second Team
Singles
Malte Christesen, Rollins (So)
Romain Costamagna, Barry (Jr)
Simon Gloeckner, Lynn (Fr)
Robin Marchione, Rollins (Fr)
Pavel Mojha, Lynn (Fr)
Matt Nicholson-Lewis, Saint Leo (Jr)

Doubles
Will Kwok/Jason Alabaster, Rollins (Fr/Jr)
Matt Nicholson-Lewis/Bruno Sisti, Saint Leo (Jr/Fr)
Max Wimmer/Ollie Lemaitre, Barry (Sr/Jr)

Honorable Mention
Singles
Leo Vivas, Barry (Jr)

Bucs Men's Tennis Host South Regional Saturday-Monday

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 22:22:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis team will host the NCAA Division II South Region tournament at Buccaneer Tennis Center Saturday-Monday.

The Buccaneers (23-0) meet the winner of Stillman-Alabama Huntsville at 11:30 a.m. Sunday in the first semifinal. Stillman (25-2) plays Alabama-Huntsville (14-13) at 9 a.m. Saturday.

Rollins (13-10) plays Saint Leo (13-10) in the other semifinal at 2 p.m. Sunday. The two semifinal winners will play for the region championship 10 a.m. Monday.

Barry's men won the 2010 national title, and are coming off their second straight Sunshine State Conference championship last weekend.

NCAA South Region Tournament Schedule
Saturday, April 27
Time                      Venue                                  M/W             Match
9:00 am                Buc Tennis Center           M                    #8 Stillman vs. #9 Alabama-Huntsville
11:30 am              Buc Tennis Center           W                    #8 Stillman vs. #1 Barry
2:00 pm                Buc Tennis Center           W                    #4 Rollins vs. #5 Lynn

Sunday, April 28
9:00 am                Buc Tennis Center           W                    Championship match
11:30 am              Buc Tennis Center           M                    #1 Barry vs. Match 1 winner
2:00 pm                Buc Tennis Center           M                    #4 Rollins vs. #5 Saint Leo

Monday, April 29
10:00 am Buc Tennis Center M Championship match

Note: Tuesday, April 30, 2013 will be utilized as a rain date (if necessary). Barry University does have lights on all courts and will be used, if necessary throughout tournament play.

REGION BRACKETS

SOUTH REGIONAL TOURNAMENT PAGE

29th Athletic Awards Banquet

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 11:27:00 GMT

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — The Barry University Athletic Department celebrated its 29^th Annual Awards Banquet on Tuesday, April 23 at Jungle Island in Miami. Awards were presented to athletes from every sport.

Tennis swept the athlete o f the year award, with Marco Mokrzycki taking the male award and Linda Fritschken earning the women’s.

Mokrzycki led the men’s tennis team to a Sunshine State Conference title for the second straight year and 10^th time overall. Mokrzycki, a singles and doubles All-American from 2012, is currently 12-2 and ranked fourth in singles and second in doubles, where he has a 15-3 record. He has singles wins this spring over the number one and two players in both NCAA Division II and NAIA.

Fritschken, also a singles All-American from 2012, led the women’s team to the SSC title this spring. It was the fourth straight win for the women and seventh overall. It was also the 50^th SSC title for the Bucs across all sports since joining the league in 1988-89. Fritschken is 16-1 in singles and 22-2 in doubles. She is ranked 33^rd in singles.

The Professor Neill Miller Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award was given to the male and female student-athletes with the highest cumulative GPA while meeting specific criteria for academic progress and athletic participation.

Basketball junior Magne Fivelstad earned male award. He has a 3.825 GPA in finance. After a red-shirt season in 2011-12, he was one of the Bucs key players this year. He was second on the team in scoring at 10.5 points per game and second in rebounding at 5.9 per contest. He led the team in field goal shooting, hitting at a 58.8 percent clip from the floor.

Basketball also took the women’s award. Amanda Frontino, who carries a 3.943 GPA in art with a specialization in graphic design, was the winner. She had her best year as a Buc, starting 11 games and ranking first on the team in +/- stats. She averaged 5.6 points and 3.1 rebounds per game and was third on the team in made three-pointers.

For the first time in program history, the women’s tennis team captured the CHAMPS/Lifeskills trophy, which has been dominated by softball and women’s soccer. Women’s soccer finished second, while softball placed third.

Volleyball's Tania Torres earned the Sister Jeanne O’Laughlin Service Award. A member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, she has been active mentoring young students in a variety of camps and clinics, and participated in National Girls & Women in Sports Day. She is also an outstanding student and is pursuing her goal of attending medical school. In addition, she has tutored students in math, physics and organic chemistry and has volunteered at the Special Olympics, Feeding South Florida and the National Beach Clean-up.

A list of all award winners is listed below:

Softball
BADIA Award	Sarah Broeseker
Rookie of the Year	Megan Copeland

Baseball
Earl S. Oster Senior Leadership Award	Tyler Kinley
Most Valuable Player	Luis Arrizurieta

Women's Soccer
Freshman of the Year	Tamara Vukovich
Leadership Award	Sofia Jakobsson

Volleyball
Red and Black Award	Tania Torres
Coach's Award	Mariana Lisboa

Men's Soccer
Jon Samford MVP Award	Thomas Coombes
Mike Mikulin Most Inspirational Award	Houghton Kinsman

Women’s Basketball
Co-Most Valuable Player	Colette Eule
Co-Most Valuable Player	Tyler Hardy

Men’s Basketball
Most Valuable Player	Justin McCoy
Cesar Odio Play Hard Award	Vladimir Raymonvil

Rowing
Co-Captain	Kristina Boncheva
Co-Captain	Kelly Harrison

Women's Golf
Player of the Year	Taylor Babcock
Team Leadership Award	Daniela Murray

Men's Golf
Carlos Velez Sportsmanship Award	Eirik Groenhaug
Player of the Year	Adam Svensson

Women's Tennis
Most Valuable Player	Linda Fritschken
Freshman of the Year	Emma Onila

Men's Tennis
Most Valuable Player	Marco Mokrzycki
Outstanding Team Leadership	Leo Vivas

Cheerleading
Most Improved	Ashley Hughes
Cheerleader of the Year	Marquet Houston

Athletic Training
Athletic Training Student of the Year	Laysa Fernandez

Professor Emerita Neill L. Miller Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Male	Magne Fivelstad (Basketball)
Female	Amanda Frontino (Basketball)

Athlete of the Year
Male	Marco Mokrzycki (Tennis)
Female	Linda Fritschken (Tennis)

Sister Jeanne O'Laughlin Community Service Award
Tania Torres (Volleyball)

CHAMPS/LifeSkills Competition
First Place	Women's Tennis
Second Place	Women's Soccer
Third Place	Softball

Back-to-Back: Men's Tennis Crowned SSC Champions

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 18:47:00 GMT

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- Assistant coach Francisco Sigaud couldn't contain himself.

"Hey, let's hear it for the legend," Sigaud said.

He was referring to head coach Dr. George Samuel, who was then serenaded with a chorus of cheers and extended applause from Barry University men's tennis' gathering at the post-game meal celebration, following the No. 2 Buccaneers' 5-2 win over No. 4 Lynn in the Sunshine State Conference Championship match.

"Winning the conference title really means a lot to me," said Samuel, who has collected 10 league titles with the men's program in his 22 years at the helm in Miami Shores. "I really want to win this title."

He and the Buccaneers now own the distinction of becoming back-to-back league champs in collecting the school's 51 SSC championship in the athletic program's history.

"Go Bucs," junior Ollie Lemaitre said after keying two victories in this title, including the clinching singles point. "On to the next one."

The next one is, of course, the NCAA Tournament, and the Buccaneers (23-0) are a lock to host the South Regional April 28-29 at Buccaneer Tennis Center. The pairings will be released Tuesday night.

Max Wimmer and Lemaitre spotted Barry a 1-0 lead after beating Max Kouyate and Alessio Iannozi, 8-3, at No. 2 doubles.The Bucs pair took a commanding 5-2 lead when, with Lemaitre serving, Wimmer rose from a crouch position and pounded Lynn's return down for a winner at the net.

Then the always effervescent Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas, whose energy transcends throughout Buccaneers lineup, delivered another 8-3 pairs victory in beating Simon Gloeckner and Pavel Mohja at the No. 3 spot. With Vivas serving, Costamagna crushed a ball to unoccupied territory to push Barry to a 7-2 lead.

"It's a great feeling having a partner who's so positive, so full of fire all the time," Vivas said of the affectionately-known Costa. "The good thing about having that kind of fire on the team is when you're having a bad day, it can help you. He can transfer the energy in a good way.

"The thing about me and Costa, every match we've played, we play it like it was the final. Every time we enter the court, everything's positive. We go in with the mentality it doesn't matter who's in front of us ... we're going to try to beat them 8-0. It's a mentality we share."

Vivas and Costamagna have won eight of their 10 doubles matches.

"It was unbelievable," Costamagna said. "We were so pumped from the first point to the last point. Yesterday we didn't play very good, so today we knew we had to step up our level."

Barry's No. 2-ranked duo of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch fell to third-ranked Willi Wolfer and Vlad Cirla, 8-5, at the top flight. That left the Buccaneers in front, 2-1, entering singles play.

Wimmer, the always cool and cocksure German who is ranked No. 22 in singles, made history himself on this day in Boca Raton when he beat 27th-ranked Kouyate, 6-4, 6-1, at the No. 3 spot for the Bucs' first singles point. With the victory, Wimmer tied Barry assistant coach Thomas Hipp's school singles record in collecting his 67th career win.

Ranked fourth in the nation, Mokrzycki grinded through a back-and-forth first set against the ninth-ranked Wolfer, who's battled injuries this season, before pulling out a 7-6 (5) win entering the brief intermission.

"I started the match really well early," said Mokrzycki, who was up a break in the embryonic stages of the match. "Suddenly, the match turned and ... he broke me back. I'm pretty sure he was handicapped a little bit, but actually he played really well.

"He had some really nice shots. I got the impression when he was down he played a little bit riskier, and he had some phenomenal shots. That gave him the possibility to come back in the first set."

After the first-set intermission in which Mokrzycki changed gear, the Buccaneers German-born senior elevated his game in the final set, putting Wolfer away 6-0 to clinch Barry's fourth team point.

"I felt like I was in control the whole match, even in the first set when it was close," Mokrzycki said. "I had more chances to break him. Every match is different. Sometimes one break is enough. Sometimes you have to break him as much as possible to steal his self-esteem, and be pumped yourself.

"I saw that he was a little bit beaten up (in the second set), so I was trying to close the match out as quick as possible, and as efficient as possible."

The Bucs were pumped alright, and Lemaitre was no exception. A junior from New Caledonia, Lemaitre rebounded from a first-set funk to win, 0-6, 6-3, 6-0, at No. 6 to clinch the title for the Buccaneers. Vivas led Mohja, 7-6 (7), in the No. 5 match.

"It's a tournament, it's a title, so it's always good to win," Costamagna said. "It was the first step after the regular season. Now we are going to go back to Barry and work even harder. It's a title for everyone. Family."

A family indeed this Buccaneer men's tennis program is, what with its large coaching contingent and extended roster, where playing time isn't always offered in equal rewards. But when you're taking home hardware, all of that means nothing.

"Winning the Sunshine State Conference is always amazing," Mokrzycki said before getting ready to enjoy a post-game meal amidst an exuberant Bucs bunch. "It's a title that defines our season so far. And at that same time, it gives us validation for what we've done so far."

Now the real journey begins.

BOX SCORE

SSC CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL

Men's Tennis Moves on to SSC Title Match

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 18:26:00 GMT

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Barry University men’s tennis team moved onto the Sunshine State Conference Championships finals after beating Rollins, 5-1, in Friday's semifinals at South County Regional Park.

Ranked No. 2 in the country, Barry (22-0) will attempt to defend its 2012 league title against No. 4 Lynn (17-5) at 10:30 a.m. Saturday. The Bucs beat Lynn last year, 5-2, in the SSC championship match.

“It’s always good to have an opportunity to win something,” Bucs sophomore Fabian Groetsch said after winning both of his matches. “We keep looking forward, so we’ll try to win it tomorrow.”

Second-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Groetsch trailed 4-3 at No. 1 doubles to Rollins’ No. 17-ranked duo of Will Kwok and Jason Alabaster. But the Buccaneers broke the Tars, and Mokrzycki served Barry ahead, 5-5. After Groetsch was broken to tie the match at 7-7, the Bucs won the next game to move within a game of clinching. But Rollins’ pair knotted the match at 8-8 to force a tiebreaker. The Bucs maintained their composure, knowing the match was tied 1-1 after two doubles matches had already been completed, winning the tiebreaker, 9-7.

“Two times we lost to decent opponents because we were thinking it was too easy for us,” Groetsch said. “At 7-all, we stepped it up, and finally we won against this team.”

Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre gave the Bucs their first doubles point with a dominating 8-1 No. 2 pairs win over Malte Christesen and Robin Marchione.

“Every point for the team is equally important,” Lemaitre said. “Max and I came out on the court confident, confident about the way we can perform. We played loose. Max played a solid doubles, served hard, and hit a bunch of great returns.”

Barry’s No. 3 doubles tandem of Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas fell to the Tars pair of Adrian Di Felice and Cooper Maxwell, 8-6, in a back-and-forth battle. That tied the match at 1-1.

Lemaitre was impressive again in collecting the Bucs’ first singles victory – a 6-0, 6-1 practically flawless performance at the No. 6 spot. His victory put No. 6-ranked Rollins (12-8) in a 3-1 hole.

“I approached my singles match determined to give another point to the team for a lead to (put us closer) to a victory,” he said. “I played very well, stayed focused all the way through the match, and didn't give my opponent any opportunities to keep up on the scoreboard.

“I'm pretty satisfied with the way I have been playing this season. I’ve played every match as best as I could. Again, every point is important. The overall score is a team effort.”

Wimmer, the No. 22-ranked player in the country, gave the Buccaneers a 4-1 lead after he weathered the storm in a 6-4, 6-3 No. 3 triumph over the 34^th-ranked Marchione. It moved Wimmer within one win of tying assistant coach Thomas Hipp’s seven-year career school singles victories record of 66. Wimmer and Alan Murray (1996-99) are tied for second. Murray went 66-13 in his four-year career. Wimmer is 66-14. Hipp was 67-13 from 2003-06.

Groetsch secured the win for the Bucs when the German got by the 49^th-ranked Christesen, 6-1, 6-4, at No. 2. Groetsch’s beautiful drop shot winner put the Buccaneers’ 19^th-ranked player ahead 3-2 in the second set. He held serve the remainder of the match.

“I felt really good because we practice hard,” Groetsch said. “My conditioning level is probably the best it’s been my whole life.”

Barry was up a set in two other singles matches when Groetsch’s clinching point halted play.

“We’ve played a pretty great season, which we can be proud of,” Lemaitre said. “Finishing the regular season undefeated feels real good, but now comes the postseason, which is the most important. Winning a conference championship (would be) an honor and a good accomplishment. We worked hard all year long for this. Everybody is very pumped, and ready to do big things.”

BOX SCORE

SSC Championships Central

Buccaneers To Stream 29th Annual Athletic Awards Banquet

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 17:30:00 GMT

MIAMI – The 29^th Annual Barry University Athletic Awards Banquet will be held on Tuesday, April 23, 2013 at Jungle Island at 5:00 pm.

The ceremony honors the athletic and academic achievements of Barry’s nearly 200 student-athletes. University faculty and administrators from each school will be present to honor our graduating seniors and over 450 additional individuals will be present for this special event.

The banquet will begin at 5:00 pm with the procession and honoring of our senior Student-Athletes starting at 5:30 pm. The first award will be the Sister Jeanne O’Laughlin Service Award. That is followed by dinner, highlight videos for all 12 teams, the presentation of team awards, including all 12 varsity sports, cheerleading and athletic training. After the presentation of the trophy for the CHAMPS/Lifeskills winner, the banquet concludes with the announcement of the male and female “Professor Emerita Neill Miller Scholar-Athletes of the Year” and male and female Athletes of the Year.

For just the second time, the awards ceremony will be broadcast live on the Buccaneer Broadcasting Network, powered by Stretch Internet. The live broadcast starts at 5:30 p.m. and will conclude around 8:30 p.m. on the Buccaneer Broadcasting Network. Click on the GameCentral logo to access the broadcast.

SSC Men's & Women's Tennis Pairings Set

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:30:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Pairings are set for the 2013 Sunshine State Conference Tennis Championships, which will be hosted next Thursday-Saturday at South County Regional Park in Boca Raton, Fla. Florida Tech is serving as the host for this year's tournament. The SSC is partnering with the Palm Beach County Sports Commission in hosting the event at South County Regional Park.

Barry has clinched the top seed in the women's bracket, having rolled to a perfect 21-0 overall record this spring, including an 8-0 slate against conference opponents. The Buccaneers will face eighth-seeded Nova Southeastern in quarterfinal action on Thursday, April 18, at 9 a.m.

The Sharks finished the regular season with a 7-11 overall record and 2-6 SSC mark. Florida Tech (14-8 overall) also posted a 2-6 conference record, but the Panthers took the No. 7 seed by virtue of a 7-2 win over the Sharks in the teams' regular-season meeting.

As such, No. 7 Florida Tech will face off with No. 2 Saint Leo at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday. Saint Leo has tallied a 14-4 overall record and 6-1 SSC mark with one conference match remaining against Eckerd on Friday afternoon. Nevertheless, the Lions have already secured the No. 2 seed regardless of that outcome, having defeated third-seeded Lynn 5-4 in a regular-season contest.

No. 3 Lynn (14-3, 6-2 SSC) will face No. 6 Tampa (14-5, 3-5 SSC) at 9 a.m. on Thursday.

The other 9 a.m. women's quarterfinal will feature No. 4 Rollins vs. No. 5 Florida Southern. The Tars (14-4) and Moccasins (15-5) both collected a 4-4 SSC record, but Rollins took the higher seed due to a 5-4 decision over Southern in the teams' regular-season match.

Thursday's quarterfinal winners will advance to the women's semifinals, which will be played at 9 a.m. on Friday. Quarterfinal losers will compete in a backdraw bracket on Friday.

Barry also rolled to the top seed in the men's bracket. The Buccaneers have chalked an unblemished 20-0 overall record and 6-0 conference mark. The Bucs will enjoy a quarterfinal bye.

Lynn secured the No. 2 seed with a 14-5 overall record and 5-1 SSC slate. The Fighting Knights will tangle with No. 7 Eckerd at 11:30 a.m. in Thursday's quarterfinal round. The Tritons have one SSC match remaining against Saint Leo on Friday afternoon, but the outcome of the match will not impact their seed.

Similarly, Saint Leo has secured the No. 3 seed regardless of its outcome versus the Tritons on Friday afternoon. Heading into that match, the Lions have posted a 13-4 overall mark and a 3-2 conference record. They have secured the third seed by virtue of a 5-4 win over Rollins in the teams' regular-season meeting.

As such, No. 3 Saint Leo will face off with No. 6 Florida Tech (11-10, 1-5) at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday. No. 4 Rollins (11-6, 3-3 SSC) will play No. 5 Florida Southern (13-8, 2-4 SSC) in the other men's quarterfinal at 11:30 a.m.

Thursday's winners will play in Friday's men's semifinals at 11:30 a.m. The losers of the Lynn/Eckerd and Saint Leo/Florida Tech matches will play each other in a Friday backdraw match. The loser of the Rollins/Florida Southern contest will not play again until Saturday's final day of action.

South County Regional Park is located at 11200 Park Access Road, Boca Raton, FL. Admission is free to all matches of the 2013 SSC Tennis Championships.

2013 SUNSHINE STATE CONFERENCE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

Quarterfinals - Thursday, April 18
9 a.m.
(Women) - No. 1 Barry vs. No. 8 Nova Southeastern
(Women) - No. 3 Lynn vs. No. 6 Tampa
(Women) - No. 4 Rollins vs. No. 5 Florida Southern
11:30 a.m.
(Women) - No. 2 Saint Leo vs. No. 7 Florida Tech
(Men) - No. 2 Lynn vs. No. 7 Eckerd
(Men) - No. 4 Rollins vs. No. 5 Florida Southern
1:30 p.m.
(Men) - No. 3 Saint Leo vs. No. 6 Florida Tech

Semifinals and Backdraw - Friday, April 19
9 a.m.
Women's Semifinal: Winner No. 1/8 vs. Winner No. 4/5
Women's Semifinal: Winner No. 2/7 vs. Winner No. 3/6
Women's Backdraw: Loser No. 1/8 vs. Loser No. 4/5
11:30 a.m.
Women's Backdraw: Loser No. 2/7 vs. Loser No. 3/6
Men's Semifinal: No. 1 Barry vs. Winner No. 4/5
Men's Semifinal: Winner No. 2/7 vs. Winner No. 3/6
1:30 p.m.
Men's Backdraw: Loser No. 2/7 vs. Loser No. 3/6

Championships and Consolation Matches - Saturday, April 20
9 a.m.
Women's Championship: Semifinal Winners
Women's 7th Place: Backdraw Losers
11:30 a.m.
Women's 3rd Place: Semifinal Losers
Women's 5th Place: Backdraw Winners
12:30 p.m.
Men's Championship: Semifinal Winners
2:30 p.m.
Men's 3rd Place: Semifinal Losers
Men's 5th Place: Backdraw Winner vs. Loser 4/5 (from Thursday)

Wimmer, Mokrzycki Catapult Bucs Men's Tennis by Bobcats

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 19:04:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Max Wimmer admitted the emotions were getting the best of him. Good thing he recovered in time during doubles play to refocus en route to No. 2 Barry men's tennis team's 8-1 win over NAIA No. 26 St. Thomas Thursday.

Wimmer, who along with fellow German-born senior Marco Mokrzycki was honored on Senior Day at Buccaneer Tennis Center, confessed the days of his over-the-waist shorts look took a backseat, if only for a few moments, to his day of recognition.

"I had more problems in doubles because it was closer to the ceremony," Wimmer said. "At first, it was a little emotional, but after a while we just played better."

Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre rallied from a 3-2 deficit to win the next six straight games to beat St. Thomas' Grover Ordonez and Ariel Listo, 8-3, at No. 2 doubles. Wimmer and Lemaitre broke their Bobcats counterparts three times during the match to win going away.

"I was not focused at first," Wimmer admitted. "But then our serve and volleys got better, and we were stronger and more accurate with our returns. We just stepped it up."

Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch, ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division II, beat Nicolas Etienne and Arturo Romero, 8-1, at No. 1. Barry's Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas defeated Josh Rosner and Esteban Serrano, 8-1, at No. 3.

"I wasn't really affected emotionally," Mokrzycki said after he and Groetsch improved to 14-2 in pairs play this year. "I was thinking about the matches I've played at Barry. I realized that this is the last regular season match that I'll play here, and I was a little bit sad. It's sad to leave. But it didn't affect my tennis."

Not after he strung together a pair of solidly executable sets to beat Etienne, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 1 singles. It improved the multi All-American recipient and No. 4-ranked player in the country's record to 11-2 this year.

"Looking now in retrospect, it's awesome that I've had so many great matches and was able to perform well in those matches," Mokrzycki said. "You're not really looking backwards, but you're looking forward to the next match."

Ranked No. 22 in the country, Wimmer also won his No. 2 singles match, 6-2, 6-2, over Ordonez.

"In singles, it's easier to get focused," Wimmer said. "In doubles, you have to react quicker, you have to be right there at the beginning. In singles, it was a good start and a good finish."

It was a flawless start and finish for Bucs sophomore Kevin Sielmann, who rolled over Listo in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0 at No. 5. Groetsch, carrying the No. 19 singles ranking, beat Romero, 6-2, 6-0, in convincing fashion at No. 3. Barry's Renato Lombardi had his way with Serrano, winning 6-1, 6-3, at No. 4. St. Thomas' Esteban Serrano won an extended battle at No. 6, beating Dominic Bisceglia, 6-3, 5-7, 10-6.

But in the end, this day was reserved for a team that continues to write its own history -- the 21-0 regular season record the best in school history -- and two seniors who've given so much to this program over the last four to five years. Both Wimmer and Mokrzycki were members of the 2010 NCAA Championship team.

"I think they're going to be missed very much, not just because they've contributed outstandingly on the court, but also because they've contributed to the chemistry of the team and as leaders," Barry 23-year tennis coach George Samuel said. "I think they're leadership for the newer players has been extremely instrumental for this team. They've provided such valuable leadership and experience for the guys on the team that I think the younger guys see that, and it will help them in the future. Then the next generation has to come in and step up.

"I can tell you we'll have to look very hard to find players as talented as Marco and Max. They're kind of the last of the Mohicans, so to speak, from our national championship team. It's always good to have some members to know what it's like to win a national championship.

"I think they're just as highly motivated this year in their senior year as they were when we won it in 2010. I think that intensity is still as fierce. I think they want to go out with a bang, and we would like that for them and for us in 2013."

Looking back, 2013 seems so distant from where the journey started for Mokrzycki and Wimmer. But the memories and bonds they've formed far outweigh any bumps along the way.

"You go through the five years, and Coach was also emotional ... " Wimmer began. "I went through a lot of injuries in the five years, but it's been a really good experience. I made a lot of friends, my old teammates I'm still talking to, especially the ones from the championship team. I think that's going to continue for the rest of our lives."

Mokrzycki the seemingly always stable-minded staple on this team, even in defeat, has lasting memories of his Buccaneer days in Red and Black, too. But like Wimmer, it's the people he's formed bonds with who define his time in Miami Shores.

"The thing that remains most in my memory is the guys I've played with, the people I've met and the teams I've played for. The team chemistry has been extremely good for the last four years. I'm pretty sure, even though I'm graduating, I will keep in contact with them."

Of course, all of that is for days that lie ahead in years to come. But both Wimmer and Mokrzycki agree, the time for this Buccaneer team is here and now.

"This is just the beginning, actually," Mokrzycki said. "The most important part is coming."

"We've worked really hard when the season started," Wimmer said. "Everybody realized that we have a chance to do something special. Now we have to achieve it. Now the hard work starts."

NET NOTES: Marco Mokrzycki will complete his undergraduate degree from Bary in finance May 4. He has a 3.413 cumulative grade point average ... Mokrzycki had a 3.62 GPA in the fall ... Max Wimmer received his undergraduate degree last year, finishing with a 3.112 in business marketing ... He is currently pursuing a master's degree in business administration.

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis Hosts St. Thomas Thursday

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:11:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Marco Mokrzycki and Max Wimmer will be honored on Senior Day as No. 2 Barry hosts St. Thomas 3 p.m. Thursday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

The Bucs (20-0) also play Palm Beach Atlantic 3 p.m. Friday. St. Thomas is ranked No. 26 in NAIA.

Mokrzycki and Wimmer are two of the best players in Barry men's tennis' storied history.

Mokrzycki has won three All-American awards, including two in singles and another in doubles, in his first three years at Barry. Last season, the 6-foot-6 Hannover, Germany, product earned All-American acclaim in both singles and doubles. Mokrzycki went 14-5 in singles, which included an 8-3 record against nationally-ranked opponents in 2012. He was ranked No. 5 in the country in singles play at the close of his junior season. Mokrzycki also went 21-6 in doubles, finishing the year with a No. 9 national ranking with partner Leo Vivas. His 21 doubles victories tied for ninth in Buccaneer single-season history.

This year, Mokrzycki is 10-2 in singles with a 7-2 record against nationally-ranked opponents. He is ranked No. 4 in the country in singles. He owns a 15-2 doubles mark, including a 13-2 record with partner Fabian Groetsch. Mokrzycki has beaten the Nos. 1-2 singles players in NCAA Division II. He and Groetsch also beat the No. 1 pairs team in the nation. Together, they are ranked No. 2 in the nation.

Mokrzycki has 71 career doubles victories, which ranks fifth in school history. His 48 career singles wins are tied for 14th all-time.

Mokrzycki has been named Sunshine State Conference Player of the Week four times this season.

Wimmer is a three-time doubles All-American, having received the honor in each of his first three seasons. As a freshmen, he went 18-2 in singles and 21-5 in doubles. He collected 18 singles and 14 doubles victories as a sophomore before racking up 13 singles and 17 doubles victories as a junior. After taking last spring off, Wimmer returned to Miami Shores in the spring for his final season.

This year, Wimmer is 15-1 in singles and 15-3 in doubles. He is ranked No. 22 nationally in singles and No. 7 with Vivas in doubles. He owns a victory over the No. 18-ranked singles player in the country, which clinched Barry's 5-4 thrilling win over No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic to end the Pirates' 42-match win streak. He and Vivas also beat the No. 11-ranked pairs team in the nation, and own an 8-0 record together. He and Ollie Lemaitre are 4-2 as a tandem.

Wimmer's 64 career singles victories rank third in school history. His 67 doubles wins are tied for sixth.

Wimmer has been named SSC Player of the Week twice this year.

MARCO MOKRZYCKI CAREER STATS

MAX WIMMER CAREER STATS

Mokrzycki Named SSC Men's Tennis Player of Week

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 15:13:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry senior Marco Mokrzycki has again been selected Sunshine State Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week presented by VALIC. He has won the award four times this season.

Mokrzycki (Hannover, Germany) won three No. 1 doubles victories and a No. 1 singles win over the No. 2-ranked player in Division II, as the No. 2 Buccaneers improved to 20-0 with three wins over Top 25 opponents in Austin, Texas. In a 9-0 sweep over No. 5 Hawaii Pacific, Mokrzycki, who is ranked No. 4 in the country, dispatched No. 2 Petr Michnev, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. He also joined Fabian Groetsch, with whom he forms the No. 2 doubles duo in the nation, for an 8-4 upset over No. 10 Michnev and Gerald Moretti. In an 8-1 victory over No. 13 Grand Canyon, Mokrzycki and Groetsch defeated Ahmad Saleem and Arjun Bal, 8-3. The duo was also victorious in a 9-0 sweep over No. 25 St. Edward's, racing past Felix Bake and Pedro Bronstrup, 8-3.

Mokrzycki is 10-2 in singles and 15-2 in doubles this year.

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Men's Tennis Completes Texas Trifecta

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 14:56:00 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas – Barry’s No. 2-ranked men’s tennis team completed a perfect weekend in its three-match swing through Texas with a 9-0 sweep at No. 25 St. Edward’s Sunday.

The Buccaneers (20-0) beat three ranked teams in Austin. They will close the regular season at home this week, beginning with Thursday’s 3 p.m. match against St. Thomas. The Bucs, who extended their school-record consecutive win streak to 20 to begin a season with Sunday’s victory over the Hilltoppers, will finish the regular season on Senior Day 3 p.m. Saturday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

For the second straight day, Barry won all three doubles matches by 8-3 scores. Ranked second in the nation, Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch beat Felix Bake and Pedro Bronstrup at the top flight. Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre bested James Rogers and Maximo Agoglia at No. 2. Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas defeated Ivan Vaz and Adrian Garza at No. 3.

Ranked No. 22 in the country, Wimmer survived a third-set match tiebreaker to beat Rogers, 6-1, 2-6, 10-1, at No. 1 singles to move into sole possession of third place on the school’s all-time career victory list with 64. He is three shy of matching Bucs assistant coach Thomas Hipp’s record of 67.

The Buccaneers won the remaining singles matches in straight sets. Groetsch, ranked 19^th, beat Bronstrup, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 2. Lemaitre defeated Agoglia, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 3. Renato Lombardi doubled up Bake, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 4. Kevin Sielmann cruised by Garza, 6-1, 6-0, at No. 5. Alejandro Andio breezed past Jacob Belanger, 6-2, 6-0, at No. 6.

The Bucs are 12-0 against nationally-ranked teams this season.

BOX SCORE

No. 2 Bucs Men's Tennis Down No. 13 'Lopes

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 15:45:00 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas – Barry University men’s tennis team won its second match over a ranked opponent in as many days at St. Edward’s University Saturday. The No. 2-ranked Buccaneers beat No. 13 Grand Canyon, 8-1, to bump its school-record consecutive match win streak to begin a season to 19 straight.

The Bucs (19-0) improved to 11-0 over ranked teams this season. Barry will finish its three-match stay in Austin with Sunday’s 9 a.m. CST test against No. 25 St. Edward’s.

Barry won all three doubles matches against the Antelopes (12-6) by identical 8-3 scores. No. 2-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch beat Ahmad Saleem and Arjun Bal at No. 1. Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre defeated Felix Schueller and Alexander Roggenkamp at No. 2. Renato Lombardi and Kevin Sielmann beat Yann Kaelin and Meidy Chazeau at No. 3.

The Buccaneers won the top five singles matches, while dropping the No. 6 flight.

Wimmer moved into a tie for third place on the school’s career singles wins leader’s list with 63 when he beat Kaelin, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 1. Wimmer is four away from matching assistant coach Thomas Hipp’s record of 67 victories. The Bucs have three regular season matches left before beginning postseason play in the Sunshine State Conference Championships April 18-20 at South County Regional Park in Boca Raton, Fla.

Romain Costamagna won his second straight three-set match in Austin, beating Saleem, 1-6, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 2. Leo Vivas took care of Schueller, 6-3, 6-0, at No. 3 to improve to 12-1.

Lombardi won his second match of the day when he defeated Bal, 6-4, 6-1, at No. 4. Sielmann also won two matches Saturday, beating Roggenkamp, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 5.

Grand Canyon’s Ramon Abaitua defeated Alejandro Andino, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 6.

BOX SCORE

No. 2 Men's Tennis Sweeps No. 5 Hawai'i Pacific

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:06:00 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas -- Barry University No. 2-ranked men's tennis team swept No. 5 Hawai'i Pacific, 9-0, Friday at St. Edward's University. It is the Bucs' fifth sweep this season.

The win was the Buccaneers' 10th over a ranked opponent this season, and improved Barry's overall mark to a school-record 18-0 to begin the season. Hawai'i Pacific fell to 14-3.

Barry's No. 2-ranked doubles team of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch beat No. 10 Petr Michnev and Gerald Moretti, 8-4, at the top flight. Mokrzycki and Groetsch improved to 11-2 this season with a 3-1 record against ranked doubles teams.

Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre defeated Yann Renault and Adriano Locorotondo, 8-5, at No. 2 doubles. The Bucs duo are 2-2 this year.

Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas cruised to an 8-3 No. 3 doubles win over Jaume Martinez-Vich and Max Hertl. That improved the Buccaneer duo's mark to 5-1 together.

Lemaitre breezed to a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Locorotondo at No. 6 singles to improve to 6-0 this season. Vivas beat Renault, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 5 to bump his record to 11-1.

Ranked No. 22, Wimmer beat Moretti, 6-4, 6-2, at No. 3 singles to move into a tie for fourth place on the school's career victory leader's list with 62. He is five shy of tying Bucs assistant coach Thomas Hipp's record of 67.

Groetsch, ranked No. 19, defeated twelfth-ranked Martinez-Vich, 6-1, 6-4, at No. 2 to clinch the team victory for the Bucs. He is 9-4 this year.

Romain Costamagna outlasted Hertl, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, at No. 4 to improve to 12-1. It was his third three-set victory of the season.

Ranked fourth in the country, Mokrzycki continued his dynamite play with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over second-ranked Michnev at the No. 1 spot. Mokrzycki is 10-2 overall and 7-2 aginst nationally-ranked opponents.

"The whole team played well," Hipp said.

Barry meets No. 13 Grand Canyon at 10 a.m. CST Saturday before finishing the Texas trip with Sunday's 9 a.m. match against No. 25 St. Edward's.

BOX SCORE

Groetsch Named SSC Men's Tennis Player of Week

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 22:23:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry sophomore Fabian Groetsch was named Sunshine State Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week presented by VALIC.

A lefty, Groetsch (Nuremberg, Germany) collected four wins to help the No. 2 Buccaneers earn a pair of victories, including a 7-2 triumph over No. 4 Lynn that secured an undefeated SSC regular season for the Buccaneers. In that top-five showdown, Groetsch, who is ranked No. 19 in NCAA Division II singles, defeated No. 23 Vlad Cirla 6-2, 7-6 (4) in the No. 2 flight. He also combined with Marco Mokrzycki for an 8-5 win over Simon Gloeckner and Pavel Mohja in the top doubles flight. Earlier in the week, Groetsch earned a 7-6 (4), 6-0 singles win over Ryan Schmitz at the No. 1 spot in Barry's 9-0 sweep of NCAA Division I Siena. He teamed with Max Wimmer for an 8-0 doubles win over Schmitz and Eric Sumanaru that same day.

Groetsch became the third Buccaneer to win the award this season.

Barry will play No. 5 Hawai'i Pacific 10 a.m. Friday to begin a three-match trip in Austin, Texas. The Bucs (17-0) will also play No. 13 Grand Canyon and No. 25 St. Edward's on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

No. 2 Men's Tennis Rallies to Beat No. 4 Lynn

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 15:12:00 GMT

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- Barry University's No. 2-ranked men's tennis team responded from a 2-1 doubles deficit to beat No. 4 Lynn on the road Saturday.

The Buccaneers (17-0, 6-0 Sunshine State Conference) won all six singles matches, three of which needed a tiebreaker or match tiebreaker to decide.

Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian each won two matches, their No. 1 doubles victory a key win after the Bucs dropped the No. 2 flight. Ranked No. 2 nationally, Mokrzycki and Groetsch beat Simon Gloeckner and Pavel Mohja, 8-5, at No. 1. That came after Lynn's Alessio Iannozzi and Max Kouyate defeated Max Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre, 8-2, at No. 2. Lynn's Vlad Cirla and Giulio Gomba withstood a battle from Leo Vivas and Romain Costamagna, pulling out a 9-8 (6) victory at the No. 3 flight.

"The mood wasn't that good because we thought we could be up 3-0 or 2-1 after doubles," Groetsch said. "It was a little bit unexpected. Marco and I had a little pressure on us because we saw that we lost one doubles match and were behind in the other. Finally we won.

"Last year we lost to them in the regionals after beating them in the conference championships. This time, I didn't feel any fear. I was expecting that we were going to win five of the singles matches."

Groetsch, ranked 19th in the country, was put to the test against 23rd-ranked Cirla at No. 2 singles. The two have a competitive history over the past two years as they've traded wins over their last four head-to-head encounters. Groetsch won the first set relatively comfortably before needing a second-set tiebreaker to pull out the win, 6-2, 7-6 (4), clinching the victory for the Buccaneers.

"The balls were getting slower (in the second set)," Groetsch said. "He returned really well two times. He was, by far, the best player on the team. I really enjoy playing him because it's always a good match."

Mokrzycki, ranked No. 4 in the country, beat No. 27 Max Kouyate, 6-3, 6-2, at No. 1 for the Bucs first singles win. Ranked 22nd, Wimmer defeated Mohja, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 3, and Lemaitre defeated Gomba, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 6, to give Barry a 4-2 lead.

After Groetsch sealed the victory for Barry, Costamagna handed Gloeckner his first loss of the season, winning 7-6 (4), 6-2 at No. 4 in one of the toughest matches of the day. Vivas withstood the 47th-ranked Iannozzi, 7-6 (3), 4-6, 10-6, in a match tiebreaker victory at No. 5.

The Bucs improved their school-record consecutive win streak to start a season, and completed an undefeated SSC regular season. Now the Buccaneers travel to Austin, Texas, for three matches, beginning with Thursday's 9 a.m. battle against No. 3 Hawai'i Pacific. Barry will also play No. 13 Grand Canyon 10 a.m. Friday and No. 31 St. Edward's 9 a.m. Saturday.

"It's always good to play against outside opponents," Groetsch said. "I'm looking forward to play there. I think everybody is looking foward to it because we're going to see some good competition."

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis No. 2 in March ITA Poll

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 22:45:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis team jumped two spots to No. 2 in the NCAA Division II poll released Wednesday by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.

The Buccaneers (16-0) beat No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic last weekend, but the results were compiled before the match. Barry ended the Pirates' 42-match win streak in the win.

Division II polls are released on a monthly basis. The next poll is scheduled to be released May 1.

Senior Marco Mokrzycki is ranked No. 4 in singles. Sophomore Fabian Groetsch is No. 19. Senior Max Wimmer is No. 22. Mokrzycki and Groetsch remain No. 2 nationally in doubles. Wimmer and junior Leo Vivas are No. 7.

Barry plays at No. 4 Lynn (13-3) at 11 a.m. Saturday in Boca Raton.

Bucs Men's Tennis Sweeps Siena

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:29:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Basketball player Magne Fivelstad is one of Barry men's tennis team's biggest supporters. Especially considering he lives with three tennis players. Sometimes, though, he feels the need to offer them a little pep talk.

"Come on Fabu, you need to focus," Fivelstad told Barry's Fabian Groetsch, who was given the honor of playing No. 1 singles Tuesday in the No. 4 Buccaneers' 9-0 win over NCAA Division I Siena College.

"Don't let the ball get by you."

After a slow start, Groetsch, affectionately known as "Fabu," was lights out in the second set of a 7-6 (4), 6-0 win over Ryan Schmitz. Credit the assist to Fivelstad.

Actually, after coming off a thrilling 5-4 win over No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic Saturday, the Bucs claim their drive to succeed is even greater.

"We are working even harder," Bucs sophomore Kevin Sielmann said after beating Eric Sumanaru, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 5 singles. "The way that we see it is we want to win the last match of the season."

Barry is off to a school-record 16 straight wins to open a season. The Bucs figure to be ranked No. 1 in this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll or the one to be released in late April. But more than rankings or school records, this Buccaneer team is driven to be the best.

Tuesday, they were on top of their game again in sweeping the Saints (2-5) even after the high of beating the top-ranked Pirates to end their 42-match win streak subsided.

"You have to keep your energy up, and keep yourself pumped and want to win," said Leo Vivas, who beat Peter Collins, 6-1, 6-2, at No. 3 singles. "You can't let your energy go down because the match is not that strong."

"You have to push yourself more," Sielmann said.

Wednesday, the doubles pushed the Bucs to a 3-0 start after Max Wimmer and Groetsch beat Schmitz and Sumanaru, 8-0, at No. 1. Vivas and Renato Lombardi beat Collins and Alex Burbine, 8-1, at No. 2. Sielmann and Alejandro Andino beat Dylan Roberts and Matt Funiciello, 8-3, at No. 3.

Lombardi beat Burbine, 6-2, 6-4, at No. 4. Andino defeated George Parkhurst, 6-0, 6-4, at No. 6. Wimmer beat Roberts, 6-2, 6-0, at No. 2.

Vivas, who improved to 9-1 in singles play and 13-0 in doubles this year, played in attack-mode to pick up another victory.

"I used the wind the right way," he said. "I was going for my shots. I was serving well, and I was pumped from the doubles so my energy was high. It feels great to contribute to the team. It's great to contribute no matter what team we play. A win is a win."

Sielmann bumped his singles record to 6-2 and improved to 3-1 in doubles.

"I was trying to push the other guy back so he'd leave me short balls so I could pound away," said Sielmann, whose power game defines his mojo on the court. "I used my serve in an effective way to win the match."

Saturday, the focus shifts to Sunshine State Conference rival and No. 3-ranked Lynn for the final regular season league match at 11 a.m. in Boca Raton.

"I feel we are ready," Vivas said. "Beating Armstrong gave us so much motivation to work even harder."

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis Coach Featured on NBC-6

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 19:25:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis coach George Samuel and the Buccaneers program was featured on NBC-6 Sports Final Sunday.

Samuel, who won his 400th match with the men's program earlier this year, and his team also beat the No. 1 team in the nation Saturday in a thrilling 5-4 win over Armstrong Atlantic.

Check out the NBC-6 piece by sports reporter Courtney Fallon:

Men's Tennis Hosts Siena Tuesday

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 00:32:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University's men's tennis team, which has ascended to the pinnacle of NCAA Division II tennis once again, hosts Siena 3 p.m. Tuesday at Buccaneer Tennis Center. The Buccaneers (14-0) will conclude the week at Sunshine State Conference rival Lynn 11 a.m. Saturday in Boca Raton.

The Bucs are coming off a 5-4 win over No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic Friday and Saturday. Barry is expected to be ranked No. 1 in the polls released later this week or the April poll at the close of the regular season.

Last season, Barry beat Lynn in the Sunshine State Conference championship in Lakeland, but the Fighting Knights ended the Bucs' season in the NCAA South Region championship in Boca Raton. While Barry may have to play Lynn once or twice more this season, the Buccaneers high standards on the court has always been about perfection. In other words, every match counts.

Siena, an NCAA Division I school in New York, will be playing the Bucs for the first time in the two team's history. The Saints are 2-4 this season, having lost their last four matches.

Lynn, which was ranked No. 3 in the country, is 14-3 this year. The Knights lost to Armstrong Atlantic Sunday, 5-0. Lynn also lost to No. 2 West Florida and No. 10 Oklahoma Christian, both by 5-4 scores. Barry beat the No. 2 Argonauts, 5-4, and OCU, 6-3.

Wednesday's home match against Siena will end a seven-match homestand. Barry won't return home again until finishing the regular season at Buccaneer Tennis Center Apr. 11-12 against St. Thomas and Palm Beach Atlantic. The SSC Championships will be held Apr. 18-20 in Boca Raton.

Mokrzycki Earns 3rd SSC Men's Tennis Award

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 19:41:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry senior Marco Mokrzycki has been tabbed Sunshine State Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week presented by VALIC.

Mokrzycki (Hannover, Germany) picked up a pair of victories over No. 1-ranked opponents as the fourth-ranked Buccaneers beat top-ranked Armstrong Atlantic, 5-4, in a showdown of NCAA Division II powerhouses. The Buccaneers' win snapped the defending national champion Pirates' 42-match win streak that dated to the beginning of the 2012 season. Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch, with whom he forms the No. 2 doubles tandem in Division II, for an 8-6 win over the No. 1 duo of Georgi Rumenov and Daniel Regan in the top doubles slot. The loss was the first of the year for the AASU tandem. He then collected a No. 1 singles win over Rumenov. Mokrzycki, who is ranked No. 7 in Division II, handed the No. 1-ranked Rumenov his first loss of the season, coming from behind to win, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

Barry Men's Tennis Unseats No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 15:14:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Barry University’s No. 4-ranked men’s tennis team overcame a 4-2 deficit to knock off No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic, 5-4, Saturday, ending the NCAA defending champ’s 42-match win streak.

“It feels amazing, but on the same page, we have to step it up,” senior Max Wimmer said after beating 18^th-ranked Sven Lalic, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 4 singles to clinch the victory for the Buccaneers. “But it feels great. It was a great team effort from everybody.”

Barry (15-0) became first team to beat Armstrong (12-1) since the Buccaneers did so in the 2011 NCAA Championships Round of 16 in Altamonte Springs, Fla. The Bucs needed two days and three three-set singles victories to do it this time around.

The Buccaneers led 2-1 after doubles play Friday. Barry’s No. 2-ranked team of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch handed the No. 1 duo in the country, Georgi Rumenov and Daniel Regan, its first loss this year when the Bucs duo pulled out an 8-6 battle at the top pairs flight.

Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas duked out another 8-6 win over Matus Mydla and Jaan Kononov at No. 3 doubles. Armstrong’s No. 9-ranked Pedro Scocuglia and Lalic overcame a test at No. 2 doubles to beat Wimmer and Ollie Lemaitre, 8-6.

But rain soaked the courts following Friday’s completion of doubles, forcing both teams to reconvene Saturday morning to finish the match. Finish the Bucs did.

After dropping the Nos. 2, 5 and 3 singles matches – the latter two in three sets – Barry found itself in a 4-2 hole. Lemaitre, the Bucs’ outspoken lefty from New Caledonia, did his part in bouncing back from a second-set loss by winning the third set in a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 victory over Pablo Gor at No. 6.

Mokrzycki, who put together his best weekend of the season, delivered again for the Bucs by rallying to knock off the No. 1-ranked singles player in the country in his 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 win over the previously unbeaten Rumenov at the top flight. That tied the match at 4-4.

“I’m very glad I could play well yesterday and today,” said Mokrzycki, who improved to 8-2 overall and 5-2 against nationally-ranked opponents this spring. “Yesterday was very tough, and we were able to pull it off (in doubles). Today, I’m just glad I that I could play very well, and play my best tennis.”

With the match squared at four team victories apiece, it all boiled down to No. 4 singles, where Wimmer and Lalic were in another three-set slugfest. Wimmer used a cross-court winner to take a 4-3 lead in the final set. He and Lalic then swapped the next two games to give the Bucs senior from Brenau, Germany, a 5-4 lead with a chance to close it out on the serve.

Wimmer used a cross-court winner, a couple unforced errors by Lalic and an ace to seal the Buccaneers victory.

“It feels great right now,” Wimmer said, thoughts already shifting to an even bigger postseason stage the Bucs still envision, “but we still have to stay on the bottom.”

That may be so, but on this weekend, Barry University men’s tennis is on top.

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis Match with No. 1 Armstrong Resumes at 9 a.m.

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 09:16:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis match with No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic will resume at 9 a.m. today at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

No. 4 Barry leads 2-1 after doubles. Rain halted play after doubles Friday evening.

The Buccaneers (14-0) are the last team to beat the defending NCAA champion Pirates (12-0), doing so in the round of 16 at the 2011 NCAA Tournament. Armstrong has won 42 straight matches, dating back to the Bucs win on May 11, 2011 in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

No. 4 Men's Tennis Hosts No. 1 Armstrong Friday

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 17:51:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – When No. 4 Barry University men’s tennis team meets No. 1 Armstrong Atlantic 3 p.m. Friday at Buccaneer Tennis Center, it will be a long-awaited match.

For one, the Buccaneers (14-0) did not get the opportunity to play the Pirates (12-0) last season as their scheduled match in Georgia was rained out. Secondly, Barry knows to be the best it has to beat the best. Right now, Armstrong is the best.

The Pirates are the defending NCAA Division II national champs. They’ve won 42 consecutive matches, dating back to May 11, 2011. Armstrong’s opponent in that match, you ask?

Barry.

The Buccaneers beat the Pirates, 5-4, in the NCAA Championships Round of 16 on May 11, 2011 in Altamonte Springs, Fla. Earlier that season, Armstrong beat Barry, 6-3, in Miami Shores.

“We are looking forward to playing these types of matches,” junior Romain Costamagna said. “For sure, they are confident, and they keep winning.”

Already this season, the Bucs beat No. 2 West Florida in Valdosta, Ga. The Pirates’ match with the Argonauts, also scheduled for a neutral site in Valdosta in late February, was cancelled.

“They come in as the favorites, but they respect us,” junior Ollie Lemaitre said. “We’re the last team they lost to. There’s a bunch of great players on both teams. If they want to win, they’re really going to have to fight because we’re not going to give them anything.”

Armstrong is 70-2 in dual match singles play this season. Barry is 68-16. The Pirates are 35-1 in doubles matches, while the Buccaneers are 33-9.

This year, the Buccaneers are producing with three new faces and four players who weren’t a part of last year’s team. Senior Max Wimmer took last year off, but has returned this year. Add to that, the Bucs have two new coaches in assistants Frederic Bonal and Francisco Sigaud, giving Barry a staff of five behind head coach George Samuel and assistants Thomas Hipp and Kern Pedersen.

“We keep turning players over, and we keep winning,” Costamagna said. “We are the only team in the U.S. to do that, so I think that’s impressive.”

New faces or not, this is about as big as it gets in college tennis during the regular season. The Buccaneers simply want to put their best product out there before winding down the regular season.

“We have to be loud and proud,” Costamagna said. “We are not just six on the court. We are proud to be Barry. If we win it will give us lots and lots of confidence. We are looking at it to see our level.

And yeah, there’s added incentive with Armstrong penciled in as Friday’s opponent.

“We don’t think too much ahead,” Lemaitre said. “We want to end that winning streak.”

NET NOTE: Be sure to watch NBC-6's Sports Final 11:30 p.m. Sunday night as sports reporter Courtney Fallon will air a piece on longtime Barry tennis coach George Samuel's career achievements. Samuel won his milestone 400th career victory with the men's program against NAIA No. 1 Embry-Riddle earlier this season.

Men's Tennis: Mokrzycki Earns SSC Player of Week Honor

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:04:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry senior Marco Mokrzycki has been selected Sunshine State Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week presented by VALIC.

It is Mokrzycki's second league weekly award this year. The first came exactly a month ago on Feb. 18.

Mokrzycki (Hannover, Germany) posted wins in four matches against nationally-ranked opponents in a week that saw the No. 4 Buccaneers remain undefeated (14-0) on the season. In a 5-4 thriller against NAIA No. 2 Auburn Montgomery, Mokrzycki handed No. 2 Nico Pinones-Haltenhoff his first loss of the season. Mokrzycki, who is ranked No. 7 in Division II singles, staved off Pinones-Haltenhoff 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (9-7) in an epic battle in the top flight. In the same match, he joined Fabian Groetsch, with whom he forms the No. 2 Division II doubles tandem, to down AUM's third-ranked duo of Tim Hewitt and Bence Toth 8-3. In an 8-1 win over No. 37 Northwood, Mokrzycki and Groetsch joined for an 8-3 decision over Marcus Oliveira and Lorenzo Montegiorgi. In a 6-3 victory over No. 10 Oklahoma Christian, Mokrzycki turned back No. 41 Bruno Tiberti 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) at No. 1 singles.

Mokrzcycki is 7-2 in singles, which includes a 4-2 mark against nationally-ranked opponents. He is 10-2 in doubles play.

No. 4 Men's Tennis Soar by No. 10 Eagles

Sun, 17 Mar 2013 20:13:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Ollie Lemaitre is on the verge of shouting again. For good reason, of course. He's playing again, and the Buccaneers men's tennis team added another win.

"They will be back on Friday," Lemaitre said of his patented Ollie Outbursts after No. 4 Barry beat No. 10 Oklahoma Christian, 6-3, Sunday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

The win improved the Bucs' record to 14-0, entering Friday's 3 p.m. home tilt with NCAA Division II defending national champ and No. 1-ranked Armstrong Atlantic.

Lemaitre, who returned to the singles lineup this weekend after not playing since Feb. 10 against No. 6 Rollins, picked up wins in doubles and singles Sunday. He and Max Wimmer beat Julio Pulido and Nicolas Auruccio, 8-4, at No. 2 doubles.

"I was really happy to play with Max because he's a great singles and doubles player," Lemaitre said. "He does everything well. He approaches well, he moves really well at the net. He sees the court really well. I played loose because I was feeling confident to play with him. I could go for shots. The other team wasn't bad, though. We just didn't let them breathe. We didn't let them take advantage of anything."

Barry's Leo Vivas and Romain Costamagna beat Paulo Roessle and Josip Smoljan, 8-4, at No. 3 doubles to secure the Bucs' second point. Barry's No. 2-ranked tandem of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch lost to OCU's No. 8-ranked Bruno Tiberti and Martin Poboril, 9-8 (5), at No. 1 doubles. That left the Buccaneers ahead 2-1 in the match, entering singles.

Ranked No. 16, Groetsch, who has regained his form of late, beat the 33rd-ranked Poboril, 6-4, 6-4, at No. 2 singles. The win bumped Groetsch's record to 6-3 this year.

Costamagna improved to 10-0 with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Smoljan at No. 3. Costamagna trailed 4-3 in the second set before rattling off three straight games to keep his perfect record alive. He trailed Love-30 in the final game, but won the next four points to close it out.

Mokrzycki beat the third ranked opponent in his past four matches when he delivered a 6-1, 7-6 (4) No. 1 singles win over Tiberti. Mokrzycki is ranked No. 7, while Tiberti is No. 41.

Lemaitre beat Roessle, 6-4, 6-2, at No. 6.

Leading 5-2 in the first set, Lemaitre dropped the next two games, allowing Roessle to close within 5-4. But the Bucs junior from New Caledonia won the next game to take the first set. Lemaitre raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set before Roessle won the next game, but the Buccaneers' nifty lefty wrapped up his third victory of the season by taking the final game.

"I came out on the court, really pumped, ready to play my game, and ready to show the team I was back," Lemaitre said. "There were ups and downs, but I think I was tough on the important points. I didn't really give up anything. I fought all the way through.

"In the second set, I didn't play with any pressure. I was just playing my game, and I trying to do what I know best. I really took the opportunities to approach the net, and I wasn't scared hitting the ball. I was really determined to end the last game with my serve. I really played loose, and went for the shots."

Lemaitre's win clinched the match for the Bucs, and it couldn't have come at a better time. He and the rest of the Bucs know they'll need their best tennis to beat the unbeaten Pirates Friday.

"It feels good to be able to help the team again," Lemaitre said. "It definitely feels good to be back in the lineup in doubles and singles, and help the guys out as much as I can. You never know who's going to clinch. You got to play it out. But it doesn't matter. It's all about the team winning. For yourself, it's always an honor. For the guys who were there watching my match, supporting, it feels good. Especially the guys not playing and the others who did as well as the fans, it feels real good."

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis 'Domin'-ates No. 37 Northwood

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 19:55:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Dominic Bisceglia had something to prove. In the process, the Buccaneers No. 4 men's tennis team coasted to an 8-1 win over No. 37 Northwood (Mich.) Friday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

"After yesterday, with how close it was, I wanted to go out and show the guys I was ready to help them with what I could do," Bisceglia said after collecting his third singles win of the year. "I was right there with 'em, and showing the fight."

Barry (13-0) put up a big fight for the Timberwolves (5-2) on a day when the Bucs barked the loudest. The Buccaneers swept the doubles matches in comfortable fashion to set the tone in a match where Barry claimed five singles points with straight-sets victories.

No. 2 nationally-ranked Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch beat Marcus Oliveira and Lorenzo Montegiorgi, 8-3, at No. 1 doubles. The win improved the Bucs' top duo's overall mark to 8-1. Renato Lombardi and Ollie Lemaitre, who sat out Thursday's dramatic 5-4 win over NAIA No. 2 Auburn Montgomery, paired up for the first time this year in an 8-2 win over Khonstantin Zhukov and Samual Walendowsky at the No. 2 pairs flight.

Romain Costamagna and Leo Vivas defeated Florian Boggia and Victor Kasak, 8-3, at No. 3 doubles. It was the Bucs tandem's second win together this season.

Bisceglia dropped a game early in the second set before breaking Walendowsky's serve on the way to a 6-1, 6-3 No. 6 singles victory.

"As the season's been going on, I've felt more comfortable on the court," Bisceglia said. "I came out hitting the ball really well today, and didn't give him really anything."

Lombardi had the team's match-clinching fifth point in his 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Zhukov at No. 5 singles. He improved to 6-4 in singles play this year. Lemaitre was a 6-1, 6-2 winner over Kasak at No. 4 in only his second singles match of the season.

Vivas picked up his eighth win of the year, cruising to a 6-2, 6-0 victory over Montegiorgi at the No. 3 spot. Alejandro Andino toughed out a 6-4, 6-2 win over Oliveira at the top singles flight to improve to 4-0. Kevin Sielmann battled Boggia before falling, 6-4, 2-6, 12-10, at No. 2 singles.

"It feels awesome to be able to put a W on the scoreboard for the team to keep the winning streak going," Bisceglia said. "The team looks really strong. We're all fired up, and we all get along really well. Hopefully we keep it going."

BOX SCORE

Mokrzycki, Men's Tennis Showered with 5-4 Win

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 21:54:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – Marco Mokrzycki will get his revenge. Not on an opponent, but rather his teammates. Especially after they doused him with cold water, following his dramatic singles victory to give No. 4 Barry an exciting 5-4 win over NAIA No. 2 Auburn Montgomery Thursday at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

“All of them,” Mokrzycki said, his eyes glowing and thoughts already beginning to plot out his next move against his teammates. “I didn’t expect it. I’m not a freshman anymore. It was a nice surprise, but definitely unexpected.”

It was a cold shower well worth it, indeed.

Ranked No. 7 in NCAA Division II, Mokrzycki overcame a gutty and previously unbeaten Nico Pinones, who is ranked No. 2 in NAIA, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (9-7), at No. 1 singles to clinch the match for the Buccaneers. Mokrzycki survived three match points, becoming the beneficiary of two of Pinones’ errors, and using an ace to send the third set tiebreaker back to deuce. Barry’s All-American then closed out the match with the next two points to keep the Bucs perfect record in tact at 12-0.

“First of all, it’s nice that we kept our winning streak alive,” said Mokrzycki, who improved to 6-2 overall. “Every match gives us confidence that we can achieve great things this year. For me, I’m happy that I could win it. My two losses came in the third set, so I’m happy I was able to pull this one out.

“At our facility, most of the time it’s windy. Even though we practice there, we have to play a little more secure. (My opponent) was playing with a lot of spin, and was very aggressive, but not missing. So I was forced to play long rallies, which made it very difficult at the end.”

The 5-4 victory was Barry’s second of the season – the other coming against Division II’s No. 2-ranked West Florida 13 days earlier in Valdosta, Ga.

Down 3-2 at No. 1 doubles, the Buccaneers second-ranked doubles team of Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch rattled off six straight points to beat the Warhawks' third-ranked Hewitt and Bence Toth, 8-6.

At No. 2 doubles, Barry’s Leo Vivas and Romain Costamagna defeated No. 14 Zino Jouini and Othmane Lalami, 8-6. Vivas and Costamagna were down a break early, but used some strong returns to finish off the Warhawks’ pair with a flurry of winners.

Auburn Montgomery’s No. 3 duo of Nico Pinones and Miguel Grifol beat Kevin Sielmann and Renato Lombardi, 8-1.

Ranked 16^th in the country, Groetsch, who claims to be as fit as he’s been all year, beat Hewitt, ranked sixth in NAIA, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 2 singles. Costamagna remained unbeaten with a 6-4, 6-2 convincing win over Zino Jouini at the No. 4 flight.

Toth overcame a three-set battle from Sielmann, winning 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 at No. 3 singles. Sielmann trailed 3-0 in the second set tiebreaker, but won five of the last six points to send the match to a third set.

Grifol beat Lombardi, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 5. Lalami, ranked No. 14, defeated Vivas, 6-4, 6-0, at No. 6.

The Buccaneers won both of the sets that went to tiebreakers, with Sielmann and Mokrzycki holding on when tension mounted.

Barry, which hosts No. 37 Northwood (Mich.) at 3 p.m. Friday, was without three players due to illness.

“It shows the guys that are stepping in are capable of playing great tennis,” Mokrzycki said. “Some of the guys that lost today had some tough matches. Being able to substitute three important players shows just how deep this team is.”

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis Hosts No. 2 Auburn Montgomery Thursday

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 18:48:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's tennis team will host Auburn Montgomery Thursday in the first of three matches over the next four days at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

Ranked No. 4 in NCAA Division II, the Buccaneers (11-0) square off with Auburn Montgomery, NAIA's No. 2-ranked team, at 2 p.m. Thursday. The Bucs will also play Division II No. 37 Northwood (Mich.) at 3 p.m. Friday and DII No. 10 Oklahoma Christian at noon Sunday.

Free hot dogs and hamburgers will be provided to all fans for Sunday's noon match.

The Buccaneers are coming off a pair of wins over Division I schools Pennsylvania and Georgetown last week at home. Barry is 56-10 in singles matches this year, which includes a 5-4 record against nationally-ranked opponents. The Bucs are 26-7 in doubles matches with a 1-1 mark against ranked duos.

Barry is in the midst of a seven-match homestand at Buccaneer Tennis Center.

Men's Tennis Muzzles Hoyas

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 15:36:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—The fourth-ranked Barry Buccaneers muzzled the NCAA Division I Georgetown Hoyas 7-2 in men’s tennis action at the Buccaneer Tennis Center on Friday.

The Bucs (11-0) won two of three doubles and five of six singles to stay unbeaten on the season.

Doubles was a nip-and-tuck affair. The Bucs’ second-ranked team of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch knocked off the Hoyas’ Charlie Caris and Casey Distaso 8-4 at number one, while Max Wimmer and Leo Vivas matched that score in beating Alex Tropiano and Shane Korber t number two. The Hoyas claimed the third flight, 8-5, as Reese Milner and Daniel Khanin beat Romain Costamagna and Ollie Lemaitre.

In singles, the Hoyas took the top flight, with Caris knocking off Wimmer 6-2, 7-5, but the Bucs won the rest. Groetsch defeated Milner 6-3, 6-3 at number two and Costamagna bumped off Distaso 6-3, 6-1 at number three.

At four, Eduardo Alfonso beat Korber 7-5, 6-2. Kevin Seilmann handled Tropiano easily 6-1, 6-1 at number five and Renato Lombardi closed out the match with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Kevin Katz at number six.

The Bucs continue their home stand with NAIA #2-ranked Auburn-Montgomery on Thursday, Mar. 14.

BOX SCORE

Men's Tennis Shakes Quakers For 10th Win

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:49:00 GMT

MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—The Barry Buccaneers continued their roll with a 6-3 win over the NCAA Division I Quakers of the University of Pennsylvania at the Buccaneer Tennis Center on Wednesday.

The Division II fourth-ranked Bucs weathered a strong challenge from the Quakers (6-3). Four of the six singles went to a third set and number three doubles went to a tie-breaker, as strong winds played havoc with the tennis conditions.

The Bucs (10-0) took the top two flights in doubles. Barry’s second-ranked duo of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch dispatched Nikola Kocovic and Zach Katz 8-6 at the top flight. At number two, Leo Vivas and Max Wimmer stayed unbeaten with an 8-5 win over Vim De Alwis and Jeremy Court.

At the final flight, Sylvester Wee and Austin Kaplan pulled out a 9-8 (5) win over Barry’s Romain Costamagna and Ollie Lemaitre for the Quakers’ first point.

In singles, the Bucs and Quakers split a pair of straight set wins at the top and bottom. Mokrzycki, ranked seventh in D-II, made short work of Kocovic 6-2, 6-4 at number one, while Penn’s De Alwis beat Eduardo Alfonso 7-6, 7-5 at number six.

The other four flights all went to third sets, with the Bucs winning three. Wimmer knocked off Court 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 at number two. At four, Renato Lombardi beat Katz 6-1, 5-7, 6-4, while Vivas won at five 7-6 (4), 1-6, 7-5 over Blaine Willenborg. Penn’s Ishmael Lahlou rallied to beat 16^th-ranked Groestch 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 at number three.

The Bucs face another Division I foe on Friday as the Georgetown Hoyas visit the Buccaneer Tennis Center at 10:00 am.

BOX SCORE

Wimmer Earns 2nd SSC Player of Week Award

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 17:50:00 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. -- Barry University senior men's tennis player Max Wimmer was named the Sunshine State Conference Player of the Week, presented by VALIC.

It is Wimmer's second weekly league-wide award of the season. He earned his first exactly a month ago in the opening week of the season.

Wimmer, a Brenau, Germany, native, won three doulbes matches, beginning at home Tuesday when he and partner Leo Vivas defeated No. 11 nationally-ranked Victor Cabellos and Victor Guimaraes of Augusta State, 8-6, at the No. 1 flight. He won two more doubles matches in Valdosta, Ga., including an important No. 3 pairs victory with Vivas that helped lead the No. 4 Buccaneers to a 5-4 win over No. 2 West Florida Friday.

Wimmer also won his No. 3 singles match in the victory over the Argonauts.

Saturday, he and Vivas collected another doubles win at No. 2, and Wimmer picked up another No. 3 singles victory as the Bucs beat host Valdosta State.

Wimmer improved to 8-0 in singles at three different flights, and 8-1 in doubles, which includes a perfect 6-0 mark with Vivas.

Barry (9-0) will host a pair of NCAA Division I schools this week, beginning with Wednesday's 10 a.m. match against Pennsylvania at Buccaneer Tennis Center. The Bucs also host Georgetown at 10 a.m. Friday.

Weekend 'Statement': Men's Tennis Handles Business

Sun, 03 Mar 2013 14:50:00 GMT

VALDOSTA, Ga. -- Dr. George Samuel and the men's tennis program has always been one of the nation's best. This weekend they made darn sure of it.

Barry beat Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, 8-1, to win three matches over the past three days. Now the Buccaneers return to Miami Shores to play a pair of Division I schools at Buccaneer Tennis Center 10 a.m. Wednesday and Friday. The Bucs meet the University of Pennsylvania Wednesday and Georgetown Friday.

"I think we made a statement," Samuel said after his team polished off its third match of the trip, following victories over No. 2 West Florida and host Valdosta State.

With 10 players making the trip to a cold, windy Georgia location where tennis is revered in its own neck-of-the woods, it was the Buccaneers who carried the loudest voices. Even when snow flurries made conditions for whacking the yellow balls back and forth not the most ideal.

Against ABAC, the Bucs altered its lineup from the regular cast in an effort to give everyone a crack at tasting victory on a weekend that went as close to perfect as possible, despite losing some tough matches. Samuel said the decision to put players in different spots in the lineup Sunday was not a demotion, but a means to challenge different players.

Barry's Ollie Lemaitre and Renato Lombardi held on for an 8-6 doubles win at the top flight over Kamil Oliver Snaider and Dragomir Culjat. Kevin Sielmann and Alejandro Andino were 8-2 winners over Richard Symanski and Michael Bailey at No. 2 pairs. Leo Vivas and Eduardo Alfonzo also won 8-2 at No. 3, beating ABAC's Parker Cuevas-Woodall and Jordan Chastain.

"I like the way the guys were responding," Samuel said, revisiting thoughts of the snowy cold weather and four key players sitting on the sidelines, cheering the others on. "Everyone of them responded."

Lemaitre, who's been hobbled by injuries, was thrust into the No. 1 singles flight, where he lost 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) to Snaider -- an opponent Samuel considered to be a formidable challenge for his junior lefty. It was only the second time Lemaitre was used in singles this year.

"I feel real good about his match," Samuel said. "He was playing against a really good opponent."

Andino picked up a No. 2 singles victory over Culjat, winning 6-2, 6-3. Sielmann, who when given an opportunity has shown a propensity to shine, rolled to a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Symanski at No. 3. Vivas defeated Cuevas-Woodall, 6-4, 6-1, at No. 4. Lombardi was a 6-0, 6-2 victor over Bailey at No. 5. Alfonzo beat Chastain, 6-2, 6-0.

"Nobody went out there with a low intensity," Samuel said. "They all gave me a real good performance. The chemistry was there, the support was there. I'm very excited about this year. We're starting to play better and better. I'm feeling really optimistic."

Victorious Over Valdosta: Men's Tennis Wins Again

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 23:41:00 GMT

VALDOSTA, Ga. -- Leo Vivas, Romain Costamagna and Max Wimmer all won two matches as No. 4 Barry beat Valdosta State, 7-2, Saturday in the second of three men's tennis matches this weekend.

Vivas and Wimmer were 8-4 winners at No. 2 doubles. Ollie Lemaitre and Costamagna were 8-2 winners at No. 3. Barry's No. 2 nationally-ranked doubles team of Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch were upset by Konstantin Kutschenko and Mario Navarro, 9-8 (7-4), at the No. 1 flight.

Vivas beat Taamo Haake, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 5 singles. Wimmer was a 6-0, 6-2 victor over Navarro at No. 3. Costamagna defeated Jasyk, 6-4, 6-1, at No. 4.

Seventh-ranked nationally, Mokrzycki picked up a mental-boosting win over 11th-ranked Kutschenko, 6-3, 6-3, at No. 1 singles. Kevin Sielmann cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Andrew Harvin at No. 6.

The Buccaneers wrap up the Georgia trip against Abraham Baldwin Sunday before returning home for two matches at Buccaneer Tennis Center beginning Wednesday against the University of Pennsylvania.

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No. 4 Men's Tennis Upsets No. 2 West Florida

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 18:25:00 GMT

VALDOSTA, Ga. -- Barry University's No. 4-ranked men's tennis team knocked off No. 2 West Florida Friday, 5-4, in a marquee neutral site match that signaled the Buccaneers' first big statement win of the season.

"It was a big win," Bucs assistant coach Thomas Hipp said. "It was a milestone victory for us."

The Buccaneers (8-0) lost to the Argonauts (5-1) at home last year, 5-4. This year, dynamics are different, and with some spirited new blood entering the program, it's a different makeup to this Bucs team.

Freshman walk-on Eduardo Alfonzo notched the team-clinching fifth point when he was inserted into the sixth singles flight, and took care of business in a 6-4, 6-3 win over Domenico Sano.

"We're playing a tough opponent, and I knew it was a big match because I was hearing it all week from the guys," Alfonzo said. "You don't really realize it until you go there and see the intensity. I'm very proud of myself. In the beginning, I didn't know I was going to have these types of opportunities. I'm glad I was given a chance to go out and compete, and help contribute to a big team victory."

Barry's coaching staff moved Alfonzo into the singles spot after doubles play, believing his early-season success and seemingly rapid maturity could help pay off. The move worked.

"Even though he's a freshman, we felt he could help us," Hipp said. "He really didn't play like a freshman. He looked like a junior. When it came down to closing it out ... he didn't get nervous or anything. He stayed really calm and confident, and it didn't affect him at all."

Max Wimmer continues to impress, delivering a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Tony Rajaobelina at No. 3 singles. He and partner Leo Vivas also came up with the second doubles point for Barry, beating Elio Latella and Felipe Frattini, 8-5, at No. 3 pairs.

"Max is playing well," Hipp said. "He played a good match today."

Marco Mokrzycki and Fabian Groetsch have developed a chemistry on the court together at the No. 1 doubles flight, and Friday it was alive again. The No. 2-ranked German pair rolled to an 8-2 win over Kevin Ducros and Bruno Savi for the Bucs' first point.

"Marco and Fabian played really well in the doubles," Hipp said. "Costa and Ollie played well, too, but they weren't able to capitalize."

Romain Costamagna and Ollie Lemaitre lost to Rajaobelina and Domenico Sano, 8-6, at No. 2 doubles. Costamagna, whose confidence has been growing of late, picked up a 6-2, 6-3 singles victory over Frattini at the No. 5 flight.

Barry's Renato Lombardi pushed Latella in the second set before succumbing, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) at No. 4. Ranked 16th in the contry, Groetsch lost to 13th-ranked Ducros, 6-3, 6-1, at the top flight. Mokrzycki, ranked No. 7, battled the fifth-ranked Savi before falling, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (6-2) at No. 2.

This rivalry with the Argonauts hit another crescendo Friday, but the Buccaneers made the most of it on this day.

"The team was very together," Alfonzo said. "We were supporting each other. That's very important because in the match sometimes you need extra energy, and everybody was there to provide the will to keep fighting. It's always motivating because you want to beat the best guys. This was a very important win for our season to get the result."

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