Men’s Tennis Seeks Fourth Straight
Skyline Conference Title

HOBOKEN, N.J. (January 16, 2007) – Coming off a 14-5 mark in 2006, the Stevens Institute of Technology men’s tennis team is primed for another successful season in 2007 as the Ducks enter their final year in the Skyline Conference before shifting to the Empire 8 next year. Having won three straight conference titles and 24 consecutive matches against Skyline opponents dating back to 2003, Stevens will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Championship for the first time in program history as the Skyline Conference champion will earn an automatic qualifier to the national tournament for the first time.

Last year’s Skyline Player of the Year Ricky Bawa (Lyndhurst, N.J.) returns for his junior season after posting an impressive 14-5 mark in singles and 11-5 ledger in doubles as a sophomore. He finished the year by winning his final 12 matches and also went 7-0 in singles play within the conference. A two-time Skyline first-team all-star, Bawa was named the conference’s rookie of the year as a freshman in 2005.

“Ricky possesses powerful ground strokes and has a dominant forehand,” second-year head coach Steve Gachko (Hoboken, N.J.) said. “His strong first serve and extremely quick hands at the net will make him a force at the top of our singles and doubles lineup.”

During the fall of 2006, Bawa had a solid showing at the Flower City Tournament as he posted a 3-0 mark in singles play. Bawa also reached the third round of the 2006 Wilson/ITA Northeast Men’s Tennis Singles Championship.

Heading into the 2007 season, Bawa will be joined at the top of the singles rotation by freshman Piotr Rusinkiewicz (Califon, N.J.). In the fall, Rusinkiewicz teamed with Bawa to qualify for the third round of the ITA Northeast Doubles Championship. A solid player at the net, Rusinkiewicz has a strong forehand and dominant serve.

The middle of the Ducks’ singles lineup will be made up of some combination of senior Boris Kocherov (Edison, N.J.), junior Arjun Mehta (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore Kobe Attias (Brick, N.J.). In 2006, Kocherov collected 11 singles victories. During his career, he has made big improvements at the net while also maintaining his consistent ground strokes and baseline play. Kocherov earned first-team all-conference honors in 2004.

Mehta is a very hard worker and excels in doubles – evidenced by a 10-3 showing in 2006. He has made great strides in his singles play though and will provide depth and experience to the middle of the lineup this year. Attias, who was named the Skyline Rookie of the Year and earned second-team honors last year, was 13-5 in singles and 10-6 in doubles in 2006. He finished the season by winning his final 11 singles matches. Attias also went a combined 11-0 in singles and doubles play within the Skyline last year.

Senior Ian Mullican (Gillette, N.J.), sophomore Joseph McKinney (Woodbridge, Va.) and freshman Russ Suereth (Hewitt, N.J.) are expected to round out the singles lineup. Mullican, who was a Skyline honorable mention in 2004, will serve as the team’s captain this year. All three players are extremely hard workers and will be instrumental in determining the Ducks’ overall success in 2007.

In doubles, Bawa and Rusinkiewicz are expected to lock down the first position. Outside of them though, the remaining two slots are open for competition. Both McKinney and Suereth have demonstrated the ability to develop into key players at the third doubles spot. McKinney posted an impressive 9-1 record in doubles last season.

During the spring, the Ducks will face a very challenging schedule that features matches against Vassar College, Drew University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Ithaca College. The tough non-conference slate should provide Stevens with plenty of high-caliber matches as the team prepares to begin Empire 8 play in 2008.

“If our upperclassmen continue to improve and our freshmen perform to their capabilities, we have the potential to have a very successful season in 2007,” Gachko said. “It is important for our players to understand that they will have to work extremely hard on a daily basis in order for us to succeed at a higher level.”

Stevens is slated to open the spring semester at Vassar on February 25 at 1 p.m.