HPU men, BYUH women top preseason tennis poll

By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer

In the Intercollegiate Tennis Association preseason poll, the Hawai'i Pacific men and Brigham Young-Hawai'i women each received No. 1 rankings.

Last season, BYUH became the only Division II school to win back-to-back men's and women's championships.

In a display of Hawai'i's tennis superiority, three of the state's four Division II schools are ranked in the men's and women's top 40 polls. For the men, BYUH was ranked No. 3 and Hawai'i-Hilo No. 39. For the women, HPU was No. 14 and UH-Hilo No. 20.

"I think we have some solid programs," HPU coach Henry Somerville said. "What players are looking for is — not just a place where they can go to school — but also a place where they really enjoy. Hawai'i is a real draw."

This season, the BYUH women's team will seek its third consecutive Division II championship, and seventh title in eight years, while the BYUH men want to rebound from the unexpected loss of three of their top five players in Peter Madarassy, Wen-Lung Chang and Jong-Woong Yoon.

BYUH coach Dave Porter said the NCAA ruled in November that Madarassy exhausted his eligibility and would be ineligible for this season, while Chang returned to Taiwan because of military commitments, and Yoon pulled out of school for financial reasons to support his family.

Madarassy was the team's No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles player, while Chang held the No. 5 or 6 singles and No. 3 doubles spot, and Yoon was the No. 3 singles and No. 2 doubles player.

Porter said he's never had three quality players leave the program so unexpectedly, and those losses might affect the Seasiders' chances of defending their men's title this season.

Last season, BYUH edged HPU, 5-4, for the men's championship. It was HPU's third runner-up finish in four years at the NCAA Division II Championship.

"I think Henry's (HPU) team has an excellent chance this season," Porter said. "If they stay healthy and play well, they have a terrific chance to keep the national championship trophy in Hawai'i."

Added Somerville: "I think we're in the mix. If we just keep trying hard, (we'll get) the law of averages, right? It's bound to come our way if we keep trying. We have the ability to do well, and now it's just a matter of proving it."

In men's singles, HPU has three ranked players in the top 18 in No. 3 Mikael Maatta, No. 9 Gabor Jaross and No. 18 Matey Pampulov. BYUH has two ranked players in No. 2 Jan Krejci and No. 32 Hong-Tae Kim.

In men's doubles, BYUH's Krejci and Kim are ranked 13th, and HPU's Pampulov and Sasa Pirc are 23rd.

As for the women, BYUH is one of the contenders for the national championship, Porter said. The Lady Seasiders have won six championships in the past seven years. BYUH has won NAIA titles in 1997 and 1998, and Division II championships in 1999, 2000 and 2002.

"We're definitely not odds-on favorites to win, but I would think that we're one of a handful of teams with a chance," Porter said. "At this point, maybe (No. 2) Lynn University (Fla.) on paper has got the team that you want to go after."

In singles, the Lady Seasiders return four players ranked in the top 16 in No. 2 Adrienn Hegedus, No. 4 Judy Weng, No. 11 Amy Sun and No. 16 Anna Anikanova. UH-Hilo's Michiko Tanaka is ranked 31st.

In doubles, BYUH's Hegedus and Weng are ranked third, followed by Sun and Anikanova at 10th. HPU's Loni Matsunaga and Dada Joksimovic are 19th, while Hawai'i-Hilo's Tanaka and Mai Fujii are 24th.

BYUH basketball holds steady in regional poll: The Brigham Young-Hawai'i men's basketball team remained in second in the West Region in the NCAA II Regional Poll released yesterday.

The Seasiders trail Cal State-San Bernardino in the poll that determines which teams will receive bids to the NCAA II tournament in March. The top eight teams in the final regional poll will receive tournament bids.

The Seasiders, 17-4 on the season, currently lead the Pacific West Conference with a 7-2 mark. The PacWest winner receives an automatic bid to the NCAA II tournament.

Reach Brandon Masuoka at bmasuoka@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2458.